A Dream
by JonathanKonopka
Summary: Escaping Rapture, Eleanor can finally begin a new life, but must inevitably confront her own Darkness. Within the Darkness, something watches, something that should not exist in this world. [NOTE: Since BioShock 2 has multiple endings, and I didn't know which to choose, I ended up recreating a new ending that mixes at least some features of most endings. (edited up to Chapter 8)]
1. Chapter 1 - The End

"We, we've done it Father, we're launching! Get to the elevator!"

Should be easy enough. With all the Splicers either dead or drowning by now, surfacing to freedom neared. The elevator reached the top, and then, the building felt like it was...sinking?

"The bombs, Father! We're falling! Run!"

The Big Daddy and Big Sister ran out the elevator and down the shaft, footfall heavy. Every heartbeat was that much closer the vessel, their only hope. Running around a turn, Delta noticed that Eleanor raised her arms and thumped to a startled, struggling halt, then he saw the stacks of explosives.

Eleanor did not know what to do. She felt as though her heart rose to her throat. The bombs would blow. Mother was right, she would abandon Father. Eleanor turned her head, looking back at him, maybe for the last time, and teleported just as the bombs exploded.

The ensuing explosion and flood of water disabled Delta's senses.

Regaining some of senses, Delta desperately swam forth. He would not give up. He noticed that his drill was missing; it was blown away, along with his other weapons, lost to the depths.

Delta landed hard against Sinclair's lifeboat, grasping the railings, which, surprisingly, were strong enough to hold a Big Daddy.

The vessel arose powerfully, gaining knots. Vision still obscure and flashing darkly, Delta turned his head, seeing the underwater skyscrapers. His home, he place he was supposed to be with his baby girl, finally escaped...

As the lifeboat continued rising, Delta saw _Fontaine Futuristics_ and other taller skyscrapers, even some fish and seaweed here and there. All the buildings became shorter and shorter, smaller and smaller, like little toys. Was this it? Had he finally escaped that watery grave?

Once the pressure lessened as the lifeboat approached the surface, Delta turned, grasping the railings with his other hand, and climbed. Pulling himself up, his legs did not have as much strength as he hoped, and he fell onto his hands and knees. He would not give up, and crawled up the grated steps. He had to see his Eleanor make it. If she did not, he would go back down and get her, he would have done everything all over again, no matter the odds. Delta struggled, suit scraping against the lifeboat, but reached the upper section of the vessel, grasping the railings to pick himself up.

 _And then, Father, the Rapture dream was over. You taught me that right and wrong are tidal forces, ever shifting. But evil is just a word, and under the skin, it's simple pain. Only when we are free from evil, do we know ourselves. For you, mercy was victory. You sacrificed, you endured, and when given the chance, you forgave._

As Eleanor's voice spoke in his mind, Delta limped over and leaned against the glass. The lifeboat was filled with water, and a family reunion took place. Mrs. Lamb swam in the water, swimming away from Eleanor? It was only a matter of time before she ran out of air.

 _When the guilty posed no further threat, you simply walked away. But when you fought the guilty, you destroyed them, always. I wanted to be like you, and I wanted Mother dead, Father, I really did._

Mrs. Lamb held her breath with everything she had, but snorted a little water. The coldness pierced her sinuses and the back of her throat. Her blood rushed, her lungs became like needles, her stomach twisted, and her limbs stiffened. She could not do this for much longer. Even as the water outside became brighter, the hope of light did not help.

Eleanor went after Mother, grabbing her leg, perhaps so that she would be in full view of Father as she drowned. Sofia seemingly tried to swim through the glass, perhaps a lat attempt to get someone's help. Now, the only friendly company were bubbles.

 _But... broken as she was, how could she hurt me, especially now?_

Sofia grabbed her throat, kicking and twitching. Eleanor pulled on Mother's leg, Sofia now levelled with Father, and the former enemies stared at each other. Sofia's limbs shook, and she jerked side to side. Was she trying to plead for his help? To gesture mercy?

What could Delta do?

Eleanor swam around Mother, and offered her a reservoir of air. Mrs. Lamb did not react. Eleanor grabbed Mother's arm and yanked it toward her, then rammed the apparatus on Mother's face. Sofia breathed deeply, curling into a fetal position.

 _Mother believed that this world was irredeemable, but she was wrong, Father. Now, she will grow old and die, knowing that I rejected her beliefs...yet I forgave. In forgiving, we left the door open for her, one that she may choose to enter._

Eleanor stepped to the glass with her long, long legs, placing a hand on the glass and staring at Father. Her helmet tilted up, and Delta also looked up. The sunlight blinded him. As Sinclair's lifeboat approached the water's surface, a high-pitched ringing noise deafened him. The vessel surfaced with a loud splash. The change in pressure caused Delta to blackout.

Delta awoke, lying on his back. As his vision gradually yet slightly recovered, he noticed Eleanor kneeling over him. Bones and muscles throbbing, he knew his time was coming.

Eleanor's pale face had a concentrated look to it. She lowered herself further to get a better look of Father, then leaned to her left, head tilting to her right, as if a cold-blooded snake sizing up her prey. One side of her admired the monster within, and she wanted to seize it for herself.

 _You may not have wanted me, Father, but you defined me,_ Eleanor's voice spoke telepathically, and she raised her needle-tipped device. Delta slightly raised his left hand, but Eleanor pushed it aside, positioning her needle above Delta.

 _You also chose to survive. No matter the cost. But all those you shot, crushed, maimed, drilled through, burned to death, gutted... It would be so easy to misjudge them, but you slaughtered without regret or guilt..._

Eleanor straightened her back, and just stared upon Father. Her predatory look faded away, and she let her arms drop. Delta's vision flashed slowly again, sunlight increasing behind Eleanor.

 _You could have made a monster of me, Father. And if I was, would I be a monster on a leash of forgiveness? A cage of innocence? It made me wonder, what would I truly become, but I was left in doubt. Didn't you want me to be like you? You are my conscience, Father, and I want you to guide me._

She leaned over Father again, leaning to her right, examining Delta. Eleanor positioned her needle above Delta again.

 _I knew I could save you. But if you felt regret, if you feared what I could become... If you wanted me to choose for myself, the only way to truly be myself... I would need to let you go. To let you die..._

Needle positioned, eyes narrowed, Eleanor pushed it down.

Father brushed the needle aside. Eleanor's head turned, as if surprised and annoyed, then she looked back at Father, confused. Her eyebrows furrowed. Her face softened. Eyebrows and eyes returning to normal, she made a babyish, gloomy face, and she naturally being baby-faced and having large puppy dog eyes...

Eleanor rested on her heels, staring at Father with her glum, pale, babyish visage. She stood, Delta losing strength. His head dropped. He could only see his daughter's tall boots.

 _The Rapture dream is over, and in waking...I am without you. Mother, I have to leave behind, and you chose to die, rather than to have me become more like you?_

Dropping her wrist-mounted needle, Eleanor stepped to Father's side, grabbed his hand, and dragged him down the metal stairs, towards the edge of the lifeboat.

 _No matter how many people you killed, no matter how grisly their deaths were...you are still my Father. You will always be my Father. And, Mother...no matter what she did to me, to you, to so many others... No matter how many people who died because of her... She will always be my Mother, even if I can't be the Utopian she wanted to see._

 _If Utopia is not a place, but a person, then whoever that may be, must choose carefully, lest repeat the same mistakes as Mother and Mr. Ryan. But this world is not ready for me, and I am not ready for this world, yet here I am._

Delta was dragged to the water, looking down at his reflection, left hand partly in the water.

 _But you gave me the greatest gift of all...something I have never had..._

Father saw Eleanor's reflection. She sat beside him, legs in the water, hands on her lap, back bent over. Daughter looked at father.

 _...my freedom._

Delta had to look at her, his grown-up Little Sister, awaiting a new life. He noticed Eleanor's head was low, then she looked back at him with a ghostly, depressed face.

 _There is no name for what I truly am, but the world...I thought we would seize it together. And whenever I needed you, you'd be there for me. Hah hah! Just imagine us, finally reunited, to make up for lost time! We would finally be able to grow, to learn, to live, to love, to be free... Together..._ Her face scrunched up, eyebrows and the corners of her mouth lifting...

Eleanor wept.

 _Yet, as I sat there with you, I wondered if even I could be redeemed..._ She wiped some tears, and slowly looked forward. She did not want Father to see her cry. She wanted him to die happy, and enjoy what little freedom they had together.

Eleanor cried steadily. She took a deep breath and slowly raised her shoulders, exhaling with parted lips. She could not top the tears. Eleanor just stared at her own reflection in the water, still seeing the freak in her reflection.

 _...for wanting to drown Mother. For killing people. For burning people to death. For having the idea that drowned so many, for wanting to become a monster..._

Eleanor had a bad feeling. Just as she looked at Father, he heard him make his last exhale. She moved a hand to him and leaned, her mouth slightly opening. Delta's head dropped breathlessly, and he no longer could see his baby girl. The Lighthouse instead came to view, a symbol of sacrifice and victory. Though, he would have preferred to see Eleanor's eyes as he died.

 _But your sacrifice gave me hope. And Father, wherever you are..._

Delta's vision faded to blackness.

 _I miss you..._ Were the last words Subject Delta felt, and he expired.

Eleanor's head and shoulders dropped. She wept bitterly and steadily, tears squeezing in-between her eyelids, as if eager to fall into the ocean. Her face felt so hot, yet her eyes, cheeks and nose felt so wet and cold, in the breeze.

Eleanor did not know how long she sat crying, but at least Father could not see her weeping anymore. But, at the same time, she wished he could. She leaned against Father's shoulder, defeated and gutted.

She did not know how long she sat crying, but the waves calmed down, and the setting sun shone through the clouds. Eleanor felt someone tap her shoulder a few times. She turned her teary face. One of the Little Sisters was patting her shoulder, wearing a bright purple dress, and Eleanor could see the reflections of the other Little Sisters amassing around her. They only wanted to comfort Big Sister, and stared at Eleanor with their cute eyes, leaking with the desire to make her feel better.

The Little Sister who patted her shoulder presented a makeshift doll to her.

 _My toy of Father..._ Eleanor smiled despite crying, and accepted the gift. She lowered her head, closed her eyes, and held the doll against her heart. _I wish I could just feel your heartbeat against my own..._

Sniffling, Eleanor picked herself up, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. Once a few Little Sisters noticed Eleanor was looking at their direction, some gasped with excitement. Many bounced on their heels, clenched their little fists, cocked their heads, and smiled, all in unison. A few more adjacent Little Sisters looked up at Eleanor and grinned. Eleanor made a crooked smile, tenderness adding more tears for her hurting eyes. She looked at the doll, and extended her arm over the waters...

No, she would keep it. Eleanor walked to her helmet, and placed the doll inside.

"What a great Big Daddy!" a Little Sister remarked.

"Yeah, a lot!" another exclaimed.

"Best Big Daddy ever!" yet another yelled, followed by the Little Sisters chirping about how good Delta was to them. Eleanor turned around, feeling better that Father's efforts were recognized. It helped reduce her tears. She softly chuckled.

"You think he's cold like that?" a Little Sister asked, putting her foot into the water, " _Brrr!_ Water's cold!" she whined, shaking her foot.

"Big Sister, there's more sun up there." A Little Sister pointed further up the lifeboat, where indeed, more sunlight shone. Not wanting to disappoint the children, Eleanor grabbed Father's arm, and dragged him. The Little Sisters skipped and scurried around Father excitedly.

Eleanor found it much harder to drag Delta up the stairs than down them. The children seemed to notice, and they helped pull or push Father up the stairs. Eleanor smiled again, teardrops patting onto Father's visor. With combined might and compassion, the Sisters heaved Subject Delta onto his back near the glass.

Eleanor placed Father's hands atop one another over his sternum, a suitable position for the deceased. The Little Sisters placed their hands upon their hearts, and lowered their chins to pay their respects. Eleanor also lowered her head, and closed her eyes. Eleanor really did not want children to see her sobbing, though they did not seem to care, and such gentle company was nice.

 _Speaking of unseen company..._


	2. Chapter 2 - Mother

Eleanor walked to the other side of the lifeboat, now controlling her emotions. Sofia Lamb sat with her back against the glass, overlooking the ocean, the apparatus that saved her nearby. Her hair and dress were messy, and she looked terrible, still quite shaken, but ahold of herself, sternly. Eleanor watched Mother withdraw a wet, crooked cigarette, and put it in her mouth. Mother pulled out a lighter, flicked the top open, and tried to spark flame. _Crrk, crrk, crrk._ It wasn't working.

Dr. Sofia Lamb wanted to curse under her breath, but then noticed a small flame burning, but it was not coming from her lighter. She saw her daughter kneeling, bearing a little flame burning above her thumb. Sofia's arm dropped, dropping her lighter. Eleanor lit Mother's cigarette, but since it was wet, she had to keep the flame burning for several seconds before the tobacco could smoulder.

"Doctor... Smoking kills, you know," Eleanor commented.

Keeping eye contact and a stern face, Mother lowered her head and raised her eyebrows, but said nothing at her daughter's comment. Eleanor watched the Little Sisters playing, and she stroked some hair off her eyes.

Eleanor sat beside Mother, making herself comfortable, resting her elbows on her knees. She slowly turned her head and looked at Mother, but Mother did not look back. Ms. Lamb inhaled twice, then exhaled a mouthful of smoke, which trailed across Eleanor. "I hate the smell of cigarettes." Sofia did not care.

"Those glasses were expensive," Mother said nonchalantly, undoubtedly referring to the eyeglasses she lost during her little swim.

"So was the porcelain I smashed," Eleanor remarked, Sofia chuckled softly at those old memories. Mother and daughter stared at the sunset, the Little Sisters playing in the background, lifeboat gently rocking, waves calmly splashing...

"You were always a brat," Sofia remarked, and it was Eleanor's turn to chuckle softly.

"Yes... Yes I was, Mother. Yes I was," Eleanor agreed with a little humour. "And you were always a bitch." It felt good to be rude to Mother, especially now that she could do nothing about it.

Neither said anything for a while, Mother smoking, daughter waiting.

"You want to know why I did it, do you?" Sofia asked, finally breaking the silence, but still did not look back at Eleanor.

"Because you wanted me to be a perfect, altruistic genius, the exact opposite of what you are. You did not want me to be like you."

Sofia exhaled another mouthful of smoke.

"And I almost succeeded. You could never understand your hidden blessing, nor could you ever understand the value of my ideas... You would have been so much more than what you are now."

"Maybe. But Mother, do you regret anything?"

"No," Sofia immediately replied. "Do you love your own Mother?" she asked rather slowly, still not looking at Eleanor.

"No."

"That explains why you tried to drown your own Mother."

"It does. I hated you, I wanted to kill you, and my hands were shaking... But I forgave you, that's what Father would have done." Eleanor said, then paused. "Contrary to wanting everyone to die for The Rapture Family, you're the one who raced into the lifeboat, hmm?" Mother tittered at that comment. "We are still surrounded by lots of water, Mother..." Eleanor somewhat jokingly threatened.

"Eleanor..." Sofia said quietly but firmly, as if speaking to a toddler caught red-handed, though in fact, Sofia was the one caught red-handed. Dr. Lamb sighed at that thought. Eleanor looked at her, noticing Mother's eyes shiny, but Sofia was good at fighting against emotions. She certainly did not want her daughter to see her weak, especially now, but Eleanor still cared.

"Look, Mother, you never wanted me to be myself, but love is just a chemical reaction. You are the one who decides its meaning. You changed, Mother, you finished your last game, and there's no going back. We both know what this means for you. For us. This is what Father would have wanted," Eleanor explained, Mother huffed. "Deny it if you want, Mother. But you couldn't bear to watch me mourn Father, and we both know why. You are not who you used to be. The door is open for you. Father is proud, Mother, of us both."

Dr. Sofia Lamb wanted to tell Eleanor that Delta was not her Father, and she, not his daughter, at least not naturally. But how could Sofia ever sever their bond, even after his death? Nevertheless, Mother kept quiet. She rubbed her eyes with the back of her hands before any teardrops fell, and returned to her usual self.

"Mother, when you were drowning... I offered you air, but you did not take it. I had to plunge it onto your face. Why didn't you take it?" Eleanor asked. Mother did not reply, and just smoked. "It was your guilt and regret."

Another silence, another puff of nicotine.

Daughter and Mother stared at the sunset, warmth melting the silenced tension between them. Eleanor was still curious and fascinated about the sun, and she stared at it relentlessly. The heat of sunlight felt so much better than heaters down below, and it made her sleepy. She yawned. Eleanor really wanted to talk with Mother about something important.

"Mother?" Eleanor asked, "Mother? Mother, look at me." Sofia did not listen. "Mother!" Eleanor nearly shouted, leaning into Mother, and Sofia scowled at her, but the two made eye contact. "Do you love me?" Eleanor asked with puppy dog eyes. Mother paused. Sofia's scowl faded away, leaving behind blank coldness.

"Yes," Sofia replied, still keeping eye contact, though Eleanor was not convinced. "Even though I couldn't make you what I wanted you to be... What you should have become... And all this time, I only tried harder for the Rapture Family... You were quite the investment and the debt, and all of it is wiped away. And now, everything is gone...everything."

The Little Sisters still played around without a care in the world. Mrs. Lamb looked back at the ocean, and sighed.

Eleanor extended her long, long legs, having a good little stretch and a good little yawn. She softly rested her head on Mother's shoulder.

"No, not everything, "Eleanor whispered. "Besides, Mother, I'm the one who's baby-faced. How could you ever think of trying to change that?" Mother made a little smile, holding back a chuckle. "I must have been a really cute baby, hmm?"

"You were," Mother agreed, thinking about Eleanor's big smiles, big eyes, little feet, and little body, all those years ago... Playing with and tickling her feet while she giggled and kicked...

"But you and Father wanted me to be good, and I am. My parents succeeded. I am good, and that's good enough."

"I would have made you so much better... I would have... l...wanted that."

"Tell me again, Mother, do you love me?" Eleanor asked softly, getting a little sleepy, and feeling rather comfy beside mom. Sofia exhaled another round of smoke.

Eleanor would not give up easily, but already knew that her carefully selected words were gradually getting past Mother's stern defences.

"Yes, I love you, Eleanor, I do. But, I won't forgive you. I will _never_ forgive you."

"I suppose we're even, then. Debt neither of us owe, and now, we are both free," Eleanor remarked, head still on Mother's shoulder. Sleepiness crept up on Mother, and soon, Sofia rested her head on her daughter's, eyes gradually closing.

"How did you escape, anyways?" Mother asked sleepily, inhaling her cigarette twice and then exhaling slowly.

"I could control the Little Sisters. They are the reason I escaped and freed Father. My bond with them was much, much stronger than you thought," Eleanor replied, eyes closing. "I gave them their freedom."

"Huh. Remind me to keep a closer eye on kids next time," Mother commented, Eleanor tittered.

Tired and worn-out, Sofia exhaled softly, but then opened her eyes. Cigarette needs attention. She had another puff, then flicked her cigarette with her thumb to shake the smouldering ashes away.

"So, where would you like to go, Mother? Iceland? Greenland? Ireland? Scotland? Wales? Norway? Denmark? France? Spain? Portugal? Morocco? Newfoundland? Quebec? Nova Scotia? Boston? New York? New Jersey? I think Canada would be the best place for you. Lots of nice people there, eh?" Eleanor spoke with some optimism, but Mother winced at the thought.

"Canada? Heavens no. I'd rather go to Colombia," Mother replied, letting her head lean back against the glass and closing her eyes. She looked exhausted.

"You mean... _British_ Columbia?" Eleanor teased.

Sofia had another generous portion of tobacco. She sure had a tough pair of lungs. Cig almost gone, she tossed the thing away, and a Little Sister promptly stomped on it.

" _Hwahh!_ " the child exclaimed as she crushed the cig dead.

Sofia slowly exhaled the smoke through her nose. Eleanor's eyes got heavy, and she felt herself going to sleep. She would never have guessed it would be so comfortable sitting with mom.

"Let's... go to Ireland, they actually speak English. I don't want to be surrounded by... Germanic-speaking mumblers," Mother mumbled, her eyelids closing. Eleanor felt Mother's head get a little heavier.

"Yeah... South-east, then, to Ireland," Eleanor muttered. The pair dozed off.

* * *

Eleanor awoke a while later, several Little Sisters standing in front of her. She saw the dawn, and still felt Mother's head on hers.

"Big Sister?" a Little Sister squeaked.

"Cold." another Little Sister said, hugging herself and bending her knees.

"Cold, cold..."

Eleanor smiled, then gently got up, being careful not to wake Mother, who now leaned against the glass.

"And no hidey hole!"

All the Little Sisters looked up at Eleanor, and she conjured a fireball.

"Woah!"

"Oo!"

"Ahh."

Eleanor placed the fireball down, where it served as a steady source of heat. Eleanor looked at Mother. She had curled up into a ball in her sleep, and being human, was obviously cold. Eleanor got an idea, and her telekinesis activated...

The Little Sisters gathered around the floating flame, putting their hands before it. A Little Sister turned her head, seeing that Eleanor had used her psychokinesis to place Delta sitting against the glass and then gently slide him against the still-snoozing Sofia, his hands still crossed. Eleanor was quite happy with what she did, something she always wanted.

 _Family..._

She stroked some hair out of her shiny eyes, and smiled warmly.

Eleanor Lamb, and Dr. Sofia Lamb, sat at either side of Father, both leaning against him. Eleanor made herself comfortable and closed her eyes. The Little Sisters smiled. Some yawned.

One by one, the Little Sisters snuggled around Delta, Eleanor and Sofia. Once comfortable, the Little Sisters watched the twilight end. As Eleanor's conjured fireball shed warmth and light, at long last, the girls could finally sleep without monsters.


	3. Chapter 3 - Angels

Eleanor dreamt. She stood in a vast hallway, everything having a grey tinge. The ceiling leaked here and there, forming puddles along the hallway. Everything felt slower. She noticed she wore boots and canvas, so was in her Big Sister outfit in this dream. She stroked her head, glove rubbing against her hair, no helmet.

Eleanor walked down the hallway, and she gradually passed doors on either side, which so far were all closed. She saw the first opened door, and decided to look inside. She saw a golden statue of Father, standing triumphantly. Eleanor smiled.

"Hah, Father... just as I remembered him. At least this isn't a fever dream."

As she walked, she would turn to look inside the doors, and would see more golden statues: one of Aunt Gracie here, or one of Andrew Ryan there, or that of a Big Sister lifting a Little Sister as a mother would her baby. Other golden statues consisted of an angel, _Atlas_ of GE Building, caped knights with muskets, the Founding Fathers, Leonard Wibberley, Ayn Rand, Ernest Hemingway, and George Orwell.

After the golden statues, in the next opened door, Eleanor saw people wearing bunny masks and suits, dancing casually. Next, she saw some sort of gigantic, winged, beaked Big Daddy. Then, a black marble statue of a bipedal dragon, staring at her with his head tilted diagonally down. He was quite a dashing, noble figure. She would also see ghostly people, whispering and murmuring, but could not understand them. A dark statue of a Schwarze Sonne was the next thing she saw, but paid it little attention.

Eleanor saw another dark monument in the next room, which seemed to be staring at her, a monument depicting Korczak and his children. Although Eleanor had never seen such a monument, and did not know what it was about, it stood out to her. The monument emanated with as much sadness as hope, how hopeless. She moved on.

The next room was different, and had some colour. This room revealed a blurry scene, that of a porch with trees and sunlight further on. Sitting on the porch was a father, holding a baby wrapped in white cloth, their heads close. Eleanor paused, and just stared. The scene made her heart tingle with warmth, and was exactly what she yearned for.

 _Could this be... Father and I? Long, long ago? Before Rapture? No, that can't be possible..._ She did not remember much before Rapture, but Father came from the surface. How beautiful it would be if she could be with Father and sunlight. She wanted to step in to take a closer look.

"It would be very intriguing if I could see myself as a baby, but...I'll leave them alone."

Eleanor was about to move on, but stopped. She did not know why, but she felt like she was being watched. Although she knew this was a dream, the feeling of being watched and _déjà vu_ felt quite real.

"You're watching me. I can feel it."

Soon, she heard a heart beating loudly, accompanied by guttural breathing always followed by dripping. She felt heat flow to her backside, and wanted to turn around.

"Do not look at me, Eleanor, or you will fall into insanity comparable to your other sisters," a very deep, wet, guttural voice warned, the voice so deep it was difficult to understand. At first, Eleanor did not care, but she heeded the warning.

"You're quite the character," Eleanor remarked, not turning around.

"Not quite, girl. This is more than a dream, as you have realized," the voice continued with some tenseness, Eleanor feeling warm liquid spatter on her back. The scent of blood and freshly cut flesh reached her nose.

"Mhm. My thoughts...how did you bond with it?"

"Similarly to how you could control your Little Sisters, though my mind is far greater than that of man or technology. Just as you bonded with your Father, so I have bonded with you, although without your consent."

"Why?"

"Because this is important for me, Eleanor, that's why."

"Who are you? Fontaine back from the dead? A Big Daddy with a new Plasmid? A lone scientist jampacked with sea slugs?"

" _Eleanor's_ _Darkness._ "

Eleanor huffed.

"Don't play games with me."

"You can call me by my nickname, Spirry. Rest assured, I am not Frank or a Big Daddy, but I suppose you could consider me a scientist. Let's just say that...my experiments have brought the capabilities of those sea slugs to shame."

"Spirry? That's a rather... unamusing name for someone like you."

"Even I used to be a child. You know the importance of childhood. If you prefer a longer name, it is Spiritus. But Mikha'el works, too., Spirry remarked, pronouncing the name Michael in Hebrew. "I need the help of an extradimensional trinity to be free. Like you, I want to be free, and see the sun." His words softened Eleanor a little, but she remained suspicious. She thought about herself and her ascent from Rapture, but what kind of baptism did this fellow desire?

"I am not going back to Rapture. And even if I wanted, I can't go back."

"I know that. That's not what I mean. The only help I need from you...happens here. I also need you to stay alive after this is over, Ms. Lamb."

"I can help you, Mr. Spirry, but only will if you tell me... what are you? I want to know you, now." Eleanor demanded, though expected the gentleman to continue his habit of riddles. Though, this was the first time anyone called her Ms. Lamb. She was unsure if she liked it or not.

"What I am? Well... An angel of death, some would say."

"You're just like mother, always playing a game... Well, angels don't smell like blood, so you must be something else, an antonym of an angel."

"Very good, clever girl," he somewhat teased. "Everyone has their own personal demons to slay, Ms. Lamb, isn't that why you drank the blood of angels?"

"Hm... What do you want me to do, Mr. Spirry?"

"You are an ideal child, Eleanor, a Utopian, one who serves the path of good without question. You must save one more little girl, one who was forgotten by time. Find her behind one of the doors."

"This dream I am in, it has a lot of doors, if you did not notice. Which one do I need to find?"

"You will know."

"How?" Eleanor asked, starting to turn around, still moving ever so slowly due to the constraints of the dream, but then Spirry grabbed her head and turned it forwards. He was quite strong, overpowering her head with one hand, a grasp she could not resist. She felt his giant, sharp fingernails poking into her scalp, but was not afraid.

"Patience and determination, Eleanor," he whispered, Eleanor feeling his breath on her hair, ears and neck, all of which became moist. His breath strongly smelled of blood, and reminded Eleanor of sucking out ADAM and drinking it as a child. "If you see me, you will go mad. Your Plasmids won't work here, for the time being, so don't bother trying to teleport. Eleanor, save the Little Sister forgotten by time, you are the only one who can."

"Fine, have it your way...but don't follow me, I don't want you breathing down my neck."

"As you wish." His beating heart, and gargled breathing, stopped.

Eleanor turned around, slowly, due to the constraints of this dream, but saw no one. All that was left of Spirry was a pool of blood on the floor. He must have been using some sort of custom Plasmid, one that allowed him to transcend bodily and mental limitations. Since those sea slugs could be used to break down an individual to the most basic properties, this man must have undergone some seriously extreme modifications. Eleanor rubbed the back of her head, and found blood in her hand. She sighed, wiping her friend's blood on her leggings.

"Alright...let's go find this Little Sister."

For the most part, she saw a repetition of what she already saw. Sometimes, she tried to open closed doors, but they were locked.

Eleanor continued searching the doors for what felt like hours on end. She sure wished sleeping was easier than this, but clearly had no choice in the matter tonight.

Grunting, Eleanor checked on a closed door, locked. She leaned into it to try and see through it, but could not. She thought she heard a music box, an appropriate thing for a baby. Perhaps the Little Sister was here? Eleanor knocked on the door, but no one answered.

"Hello? I am looking for a...my sister. A Little Sister from Rapture. Is she there?"

"Who's there?" a man inside asked, walking to his side of the door. "Is that you, Esther?"

"No, I'm Eleanor, I'm looking for a Little Sister from Rapture."

"Hunh? What? What do you want?" he demanded.

"Nothing, I'm just looking for my sister. Is she there?"

"What do you want with her?"

"Nothing. Mr. Spirry told me to save a Little Sister."

"Hu-what? Go away, you're crazy."

"Alright." Eleanor moved on.

 _You are supposed to save the goddamned girl, Ms. Lamb, not walk away._ Spirry's voice sounded in her thoughts, clearly upset. _Do not let go, Eleanor. Never let go. Find the girl again, and try again, even if it means breaking the fucking door and killing anyone in your way. You're a big girl, Eleanor, and big girls aren't afraid to get rough._

"Why can't you do it, then?"

 _My appearance would plunge the child into insanity or scare her to death. I am not what a child should set eyes upon. As for the man, he is a broken, sinful soul, I do not wish to horrify him further, either. Do this for me, for him, and for the child._

"I can. But why did you pick me?"

 _I don't like typical, stupid people. You are exceptional, even more impressive that you are so young. You are Utopia, Ms. Lamb, and I won't let your parents' efforts go to waste. I need you and your conscience to get this done._

Eleanor sighed."I guess I won't be having a normal life after all."

 _Normalcy is for typical, stupid people, Eleanor. You are too good for that. If you had a normal life, you would never be what you are now._

Eleanor continued seeking the doors, but once again, it was a repetition of what she had first seen. But, whenever she saw Father, standing tall and triumphant in his golden armour, he gave her hope, always.

Eleanor was about to open a door, but loud thudding sounded farther down. Someone was angrily banging against a door elsewhere, so Eleanor went to investigate.

"Open this door, right now!" a man demanded, having a rather British accent. He wore a bright brown suit, and continued banging on the door, demanding it to be opened.

 _Kill him._

"Why?"

 _Don't ask. Don't think. Do it._

"I don't have any Plasmids or weapons, just my hands."

 _Beat him to death. Strangle him. Crack his neck. Bite his throat open. Break his back over your knee._

"No, I won't kill anymore. I left that behind." Eleanor heard a feint tuning sound. She touched her nose, and saw blood on her fingers.

Eleanor began shaking. Her body heated, she had difficulty breathing, and all her blood vessels, and the veins in her eyeballs and under her skin, glowed red. She gagged, feeling blood leaking out her mouth and eye sockets. Her blood was rather hot, enough to cause her to sweat down her forehead. She heard a distorted, static sound in her head. Faint yellow light beamed out her eyes.

 _Then I have no choice but to change you, Eleanor, to make you into the likeness of your unbaptized sister. After you leave this realm, you will be able to use your Plasmids. But do not think I am forcing you to do anything. Either you help me, or I'll have to do this myself. Show me your answer._

Eleanor fell onto her hands and knees, feeling static throughout her body. Blood leaked out her mouth, nose, ears and eyes. She choked on blood. Spitting a mouthful of blood out, Eleanor picked herself up, her back, knees, and elbows bent, shoulders low, torso waggling about as if containing explosive excitement.

Lips crookedly parted and teeth clenched, Eleanor darted forth, not really knowing why. The slowed state of the dream seemed to diminish, as Eleanor could now move normally. The greyscale effect faded away, and she seemed to have...ran out the dream? Everything looked normal, real, like she was in an apartment building somewhere.

Eleanor quickly reached the man banging on the door and tackled into him, knocking him clean off his feet. He turned onto his back to see what just happened.

The blood leaking out Eleanor's mouth and eyes drizzled down her attire, and all that blood, her glowing veins, the yellow lights shining out her eyes, and the glowing blood vessels in her eyes mapped within the yellow light, gave her quite a surreal look. She was quite the demon to behold.

The man was not afraid, remaining calm and stolid, and picked himself up.

"Huh...the probability-" He was interrupted when Eleanor hook punched him in the liver. He scrunched up and fell onto a knee. Eleanor kneed him in the face, his head rearing, leaking blood.

Without thinking, Eleanor rammed the heel of her boot repeatedly into the man's sternum, breaking a rib. He convulsed. Eleanor mounted him and fed his face punches, but also kneed him in the crotch multiple times. He tried to defend himself, raising his arms, but Eleanor grabbed his right arm with her left hand, pulled it across him, held it against the floor so that he could not defend himself, and delivered more punches with her right hand into his head. Jawbone softened by strikes, she grabbed the jaw and pulled it sideways, hearing it wetly crack.

Eleanor say up beside him, punching him in the abdomen and belly, strong knuckles sinking into him. She continued throwing punches until blood leaked out the man's mouth. Finally, she ruptured a few organs.

She got up yellow-beaming eyes forming spotlights on the injured man. Blood still poured out her eyes and mouth. She did not even know where all that blood came from, apoplexy? A lot of her blood spilled onto the man's suit. In fact, a puddle of blood had already formed. She spat out a mouthful of blood, wondering what to do next.

Not sure why she was acting the way she was, Eleanor grabbed him by the shirt, more of her own blood pouring onto him, lifted him off the floor, and pinned him against the wall. She began headbutting him in the face repeatedly. His nose was totally fucked, eyes swollen, and his brow split and leaked blood profusely. He was unconscious after so much punishment.

Curling an arm around the man's midsection, Eleanor picked him up, positioned him sideways mid-air, then dropped him on her knee, hearing a satisfying, wet crack. She pushed him off her knee, mounted him again, and started headbutting his face again. Gradually, her forehead crushed his skull inward, his head slowly collapsing into itself. There was not much face left, just blood and swelling.

Eleanor continued headbutting the man's face until she felt her head making splatting sounds. He was dead now, but she was not done. She used psychokinesis to lift the man's body, then conjured a ring of telekinesis around her hand. Fist empowered by a Telekinesis, Eleanor delivered a wide haymaker, and the telekinetic mass erupted on impact. The front half of the man's head burst and splatted onto the glass panel of a door, as well as Eleanor's face and front. The corpse fell into the pool of blood. The pool of blood reached the door and ran underneath it.

Turning to the side, Eleanor saw her reflection in the glass in the door. She was quite drenched in blood, mostly her own, her skin sticking to her outfit. Without thinking, she grabbed the doorknob and shook it. Locked. Screeching like a dolphin from anger, Eleanor headbutted the window, smashing the glass. She leaned through the door and unlocked it, and forced it open.

A man stood up from his desk, armed with a pistol with a large magazine in front of the trigger. The man ran towards a door, firing at Eleanor. She screeched, charging the man as bullets thudded against her body. She grabbed his wrist and pulled it down, then slammed her head into his head, and he immediately fell backward, limp and unconscious.

Eleanor spun to the side, opening the door the man ran toward, and stepped into a small bedroom with a white crib. She felt a sharp pain in her brain and eyes, accompanied by sizzling and a high-pitched inhaling noise in her mind. Her vision changed into red cracks, as if she could see her own blood vessels. The pain and noise were so much that Eleanor fell onto her hands and knees, panting. Blood drizzled out her eyes and mouth.

Static and tuning erupted in Eleanor's thoughts, and after a few seconds, her glowing blood vessels and veins, and yellow lighting beaming out her eyes, faded away. Her eye sockets and mouth stopped leaking blood, only dripping a bit. Everything returned to a dreamy greyscale state, Eleanor's movement partly slow-motion again.

"Wha...what happened?" She caught her breath and waited for a while, trying to regain her senses and memories.

Eleanor sat up, spitting out some blood. She rubbed her hands across her eyes, but just smeared blood across her face. She saw the crib, and paused.

"The Little Sister..." Eleanor remembered.

She walked to the crib, placing her hands on the railings, and looked down. Quietly staring back at her, lying on her back, arms up, wiggling a bit, was a beautiful little angel with dark hair and big blue eyes. Both pairs of big blue eyes stared at each other for several seconds.

"Uh-oo-wuah, eh-hih, w-w-wihh..." Was the baby trying to say something to Eleanor?

Eleanor did not know how to react, or what to do.

"You... You...you look just like me..." Eleanor whispered. She had never seen a baby like this before. This was so surreal to her, especially since both girls looked so similar.

The baby made big eyes and tilted her head, and Eleanor tilted her head and made puppy dog eyes in return. The baby bent her knees and grabbed her feet. Eleanor lowered her shoulders, deeply moved by the sight of something vastly more innocent, purer, and gentler than her. She could just stand here and watch the baby forever. Memories of being a Little Sister, and prancing with Father, rushed in Eleanor's thoughts.

 _Now, do you see why this is so important?_ Spirry's voice returned. _You know what's the difference between the man you headbutted, and your Father? Your Father was a real parent. That other man is not like Father, but a failure. He's a gambler, a murderer, a loser, a deceiver, a rube. In fact, the baby is not even his child, not naturally, anyways. Don't let that idiot have her, but it's your choice to save her or not._

"But this is not a Little Sister, this is a baby... Spirry, did you lie to me?"

 _If she looks like a Little Sister, I consider her a Little Sister. What else could the child be? She has to be a Little Sister, there is no other explanation. She even looks like you... A tiny Eleanor. For all I know, maybe she is you. Now, take her._

"I... I can't steal a baby."

 _You do not exist for the express purpose of my expectations. Either you save the girl, or I do it myself. Act quickly, your presence here will soon end. Show me your answer, Ms. Lamb._

Eleanor leaned into the crib, gently grabbing the baby.

 _Her skin is so soft..._

The baby did not resist, not even bothered by blood, just so quiet and innocent. What a great baby. Eleanor lifted the baby, and felt comfortably peaceful. The prospect of saving a girl felt hopeful, but all of this was a leap of faith in a dream, and this was not a lucid dream. Eleanor smiled.

"You're so beautiful..."

Eleanor walked out the bedroom, not even bothering to look at the man, and simply left the office, leaving behind only bloody footprints. After she left the office, she realized she was... underwater?

* * *

Eleanor jerked to the side, gasping, realizing that she indeed was underwater! She looked at her hands, but the baby was not with her, or anywhere. She noticed her needle-mounted Big Sister apparatus, though. She raised her hands, feeling her helmet. She must have gone diving for some reason, but could not remember why, and then fallen asleep? The sudden change of realities was quite the shock for her, and she just floated in the water, dumbstruck.

"The baby... Wait, was all that...just a dream? What was all that? I can't remember what happened later..." Eleanor spoke to herself, placing a hand on her visor. "Huh. A strange experience that was..."

Senses returning, Eleanor felt rather lonely floating in such vast water. Looking down, the water below her was dark blue, and below that, an abyss of darker blueness. From the darkness, something arose. A sea serpent? A sea monster? Eleanor's lighting turned yellow. She never fought a sea monster, but most of her Plasmids would work underwater.

Eleanor was not afraid, but her helmet went yellow. She had fought Spliced-up hulks and gunmen, and would die for Father, so why should killing animals be any different? She waited cautiously, and the sea monster emerged from the darkness.

 _An oarfish..._

The sea creature swam upwards vertically, perhaps twenty feet long, silver in colour, having relatively large eyes. It was quite a beautiful animal, almost two feet in breadth, long and skinny and big-eyed, just like Eleanor. The two made eye contact, and she and the oarfish swam on the spot, dorsal fin quickly undulating in the water, the two remaining levelled.

"Hello there, beautiful, how are you?" Eleanor greeted, visor green. She extended an arm, stroking the magnificent animal, the combining of an angel and a fish. The two stayed with each other for a few minutes, swimming alongside one another. Eleanor was lost for words, totally distracted by the regal fish, not even thinking about her strange dream she had awoken from.

Soon, the oarfish swam downwards, and rather quickly. Eleanor wanted to swim after it, but farther down the ocean was not where she belonged.

"Goodbye, beautiful." Eleanor swam upwards like a dolphin. Hopefully, she would be able to find the lifeboat sooner or later.

* * *

After swimming for what felt like two hours, using psychokinesis to amplify her movement, Eleanor finally reached the surface. Helmeted head bobbing, she looked around. Eleanor only saw water in all directions, and the ocean was mostly smooth, but the waters waved up and down a dozen feet or more.

"Oh my... this could be a problem..."


	4. Chapter 4 - Freedom

Eleanor wondered which direction to swim, but could not decide. Helmeted head bobbing, she felt like a sinking lure in this vast, endless ocean. She looked up, feeling an immense, gradual wave lift her, and saw the sun. The sun gave her hope, and even though she was alone floating in the ocean, why should she give up? The Big Daddy doll she left in her helmet rolled over, his tiny arm touching her cheek. Eleanor smiled.

"Oh, it will take more than the ocean to stop me, Father. But thank you for being on my shoulder."

Thoughts about that strange dream rushed through her mind. It was quite the mystery, but there was no time to worry about that now.

The child thought, and thought hard. After several seconds of nervousness, something in her mind clicked. She did not know what it was, but although dead, Father's mind left a trail that Eleanor could sense. Feint fragments of the bond between Eleanor and Father, and the bond between her and the Little Sisters, would lead her back to the lifeboat! She sighed with relief. Lunging herself forth and kicking her legs, Eleanor swam like a dolphin.

Swimming while facedown, Eleanor's beaming green visor peered into the abyss below her, and the abyss stared back. She grew up at the bottom of the ocean, why would she have thalassophobia? She could not see much, but the darkness reminded her of Rapture. She suddenly felt a little sadness.

"Rapture... Hunh. I think I will miss that place, a little..."

Ms. Lamb swam on and on. She rather enjoyed swimming along the ocean, feeling like a free fish, and the sensation of being lifted by waves was quite fun. The oarfish she met earlier must have felt this way all the time!

"Free like a fish in the ocean. Hee-hee!"

Suddenly, Eleanor felt something bump into her from behind, ending her childish fantasies. She gasped and spun around, visor yellow, wondering what happened. Eleanor turned side to side, but could not see anything underwater, and the illumination her beaming visor provided was limited.

"What was that?" She turned around, and saw a pair of black eyes approaching her, skating side to side through the water. The eyes belonged to a porbeagle, and it promptly bit over Eleanor's right glove, and then thrashed to and fro.

Feeling her arm jerking, Eleanor started punching her needle-mounted left hand at the damn shark, but the constant movement made her miss. The damn fish was well over eight feet long and easily weighed over three hundred pounds, and compared to it, Eleanor was a weak swimmer. She headbutted the damn thing in the nose. Unable to bite through the glove, the beast let go, and circled around Eleanor, one eye always gazing at her. It turned, flicking its tail and extending its jaws to go for another bite. Obviously, Eleanor could not cast explosive fireballs underwater, but she could utilize telekinesis. She cast a purplish ring of her Plasmid forth, causing water to rush towards the shark and frighten it.

While the purple ring of telekinetic power distracted the shark, Eleanor swam through the ring, which amplified her movement. She lunged her needle at it, the shark turning its head and trying to bite her. Her needle stabbed perhaps two inches into the side of the fish's mouth. Upon feeling sudden, sharp pain, the porbeagle turned around, flicked its tail at Eleanor, and swam away.

Eleanor swam after the beast, but even a Big Sister had her top speed. Within seconds, the shark disappeared into the darkness of the waters. There was no way Eleanor could catch up to it. She flipped then hovered upright, legs gently kicking. The shark did not return.

"You stay away..."

Without further ado, Eleanor continued swimming towards the lifeboat.

* * *

"Where is she?" a Little Sister chirped, on her hands and knees before the edge of the lifeboat, looking down into the water. "Did Eleanor come all the way from the upside-down house... just to swim away like a itsy-bitsy fishy?" she asked, straightening her back and putting her little hands on her sides. Another Little Sister walked by, standing beside her. The two looked at each other.

"She's coming! She would never go away! Right?"

Two more Little Sisters walked to them, bare feet tapping. The four Little Sisters looked at the water attentively, and then something jumped out with a splash, causing the four girls to squeal and cover themselves as water drops rained upon them. Several other little ones saw what happened and giggled.

"Hey! Not funny!" one of the splashed Little Sisters whined.

Eleanor straightened her legs and took her helmet off. She shook her head, hair loosening up.

"Eleanor! Is it really you? Hah-hah! You're back! Ta-da, just like that! I missed you!" a Little Sister exclaimed, snuggling her fists against her chest and walking on the spot for a second.

"I missed you too!"

"Me three!"

"We all missed you!"

"Big Sister never leaves!"

All the Little Sisters ran around Eleanor as she put her helmet down. The girls cheered, some jumping, others balled their fists, a few even cried from relief. Eleanor smiled and chuckled, moving some of her hair out of her face. She gently stroked a few of the children's heads.

 _They're so cute and beautiful..._ Eleanor thought.

"Why am I crying? She's okay!" a weeping Little Sister mumbled to herself, rubbing her eyes.

"Did you catch a fishy this time?" one of the Little Sisters asked, jumping up and down.

"Hm? What?" Eleanor asked.

"A fishy! You'd go catch fishies!"

"Guess no fishy this time?"

"Oh? No. No fishy this time. I got into big trouble with...a big fishy," Eleanor admitted, wondering why she had no memory of what happened after her strange vision. How much time had past?

"But splashy and Eleanor means...fishies?"

"Ugh! You see? I said Eleanor would be better with a cage on her back, to use as a net! I said!"

Eleanor just smiled. The little ones were so cute to watch, and they gave her memories of herself as a child. Eleanor noticed that most of the girls looked up at the sun once in a while, sometimes commenting about sunshine.

"It's like ADAM... Glowing...warm."

"I want sunshines in my belly."

"What does sunshines taste like?"

"Sunshines would taste like...angels!"

Eleanor tittered at the childish discussion. She turned her head and saw Father, still sitting where she had placed him with her telekinesis. Eleanor smiled but her eyes went low, heart heavy. She chuckled to herself. Eleanor would have liked to see Mother's face when she awoke and found out she slept against Father's shoulder!

One of the Little Sisters waddled to Eleanor, looked at Delta, then stared through the glass to see Sofia walking around, thinking to herself.

"Is momma feeling better?" the girl asked, a few other Little Sisters wincing at that word.

"I'll go check," Eleanor replied.

While the children played, Eleanor went inside the lifeboat. Mother slowly walked around aimlessly, in heavy thought, and rather angry. She did not react to Eleanor, even when Eleanor crossed her arms and watched Mother. Was Mother going crazy?

"So... Ireland?" Eleanor asked. She wanted to talk about her dream, the oarfish, and the shark. What a story it would be, but Mother clearly did not look like she was in the mood for talking.

"We're almost there," Sofia replied quickly and nonchalantly.

If Mother really loved Eleanor, would she want to talk to her daughter at least a little? Or were her words just part of a continuation of her usual game? That thought made Eleanor frown. She then thought about when she told Mother she did not love her. Did she really mean it? Or was she just trying to hurt Mother?

* * *

By evening, Ireland awaited the survivors of The Rapture Family from afar. Occasionally, the lifeboat past fishing boats. Fishermen stopped whatever they did, stood, and wondered what the hell sailed along. The Little Sisters noticed, smiled, and waved at the dumbstruck fishermen.

"They have weird toys," a Little Sister remarked while waving. She saw and heard seagulls. "Oo! Birdie angels! _Caw, caw!_ "

Eventually, the lifeboat reached Sligo harbour, which had a lighthouse built in 1908. A river went through the seaport and into the ocean. The harbour was situated in the middle of the seaport, with many buildings around the area. Sligo was not as vast as places like New York or Seattle, rather traditional, featuring medieval and Catholic architecture here and there, and mountains off in the distance.

"Beautiful," Eleanor commented, the little ones mesmerized by such sights.

Unsurprisingly, a crowd gathered on the piers, beholding the strange vessel that was Sinclair's Lifeboat. The Little Sisters got excited and waved, and amongst the crowd were other children, some of whom smiled and waved back.

"Hey, look! Boys!" a Little Sister said, blushing.

"Hah-hah! We made it to rainbows and sunshines land!"

"There's a land called rainbows and sunshines! We'll go there soon with Big Sister!"

"And we'll search the land from tail to top!"

"And if we find no leprechauns, and if I eye no pot o' gold..."

"Perhaps we'll dine on...boxty and blaa!"

While the Little Sisters sang whatever incoherent song they minded up, Sofia disembarked the lifeboat, and walked along the pier, not giving a shit about anyone or their attention. She stumbled upon a policeman who came to investigate.

"There's a dead man onboard," was all Sofia said to him.

Eleanor stood back, arms crossed, beholding the scenery unfold. The Little Sisters were getting excited, so eager to see this new world. Eleanor sighed, gaze lowering.

"We made it. I almost can't believe it." Eleanor's shoulders dropped, and she turned around. Sadness welled up in her, and she just...stared at Delta. Father. He remained where he sat, sitting peacefully.

Eleanor would have loved to be with him right now. How great it would feel, for Father and daughter to finally be free, together, away from Rapture, forever. She imagined herself riding a carousel. She wouldn't care if people thought she was crazy, she would still love to do it.

Eleanor's eyes get warm and moist. She made a slow, deep inhale, then her shoulders and head dropped.

"Why didn't you let me save you..." she whispered. Eleanor really did not want to cry, not now, but felt the emotions swell. She saw a Little Sister looking up at her. Both girls smile, then the other little ones scuttled around Delta.

"Goodbye, Johnny," a Little Sister said, she and several others nodding. Then, all the Little Sisters, few by few, clasped their hands, lowered their heads, closed their eyes, and whispered their goodbyes.

"Goodbye, Father," Eleanor whispered last. "Thank you, for everything."

Eleanor picked up her helmet, holding it with one arm against her waist. She did not want to leave without Father, but what could she do? Head and shoulders still low, she approached the side of the lifeboat, ready to go down the ladder, but stopped. Eleanor could not help but take one last look at Father, and sighed.

Eleanor overheard the ambulance and a police car coming to the scene. She wondered what to say to the physicians and officers who appeared. She could see the physicians getting medical things ready, and the police officers dealing with the crowds. Eleanor sighed when she saw a news van racing to the scene. She sure did not want to be on the news, or talk to reporters.

"They have peepers up here, too!"

"Smile for the peepers!"

Eleanor smiled at the Little Sisters as they pooled around her.

"Eleanor...now what?" a Little Sister asked, the little ones looking up at Eleanor attentively.

"I know who I am, and we are free. The world is about to change, but in this story... Rapture...was just the beginning," Eleanor replied, then smiled. The girls smiled back, eyes big and curious.

She did not know where Mother went, but Eleanor jumped down to the pier, the children doing likewise. The Little Sisters ran past Eleanor, grinning, and raced to the other children to play with. As she walked down the pier, Eleanor noticed she had a little extra bounce in her heartbeat, gait, and hip sway.


	5. Chapter 5 - Éirinn go Brách

Eleanor politely sat in a hospital room, arms crossed, helmet on her lap, gloves on the floor, head low. Standing in front of her were a doctor, nurse, policeman, and an Anglican priest, all staring at her attentively. Eleanor did not know why a priest was here, but the Irish were very, very Catholic (yet the priest was Anglican).

"Quite the story, hunh?" Eleanor remarked, raising her chin.

Eleanor's ascent from Rapture, undoubtedly, was quite the story to tell even though she paraphrased everything. The four people just blankly stared at the rather tall girl with a rather crazy story.

 _Maybe I should tell them about Mr. Spirry... That's an even crazier story._

"Well... I heard Sligo was involved in shippin' ta Iceland every now n' then past some years or so," the policeman mumbled, writing down some notes. He was the same policeman Mother stumbled upon.

Since Sligo was a port city, it was possible that Fontaine's smuggling occasionally exported from Sligo, and also possible that children were kidnapped from western Ireland and taken to Rapture during Sofia's leadership. The policeman would have quite a lot of notes to take back to HQ, and a lot of work to do.

"An' you sure ya alright, Miss Eleanor?" the doctor asked.

"Yes, I'm fine, thank you," Eleanor replied with a small smile.

"Ya really sure you're okay, Eleanor?" the nurse implored, Eleanor smiled.

"Yes, yes, I'm fine! Really, I am!" Eleanor repeated in good humor. She liked the Irish accent, and the way they slightly rolled the R was a bit funny.

"An' ya say awll dis be goin' on since ya was a kid?" the policeman demanded. Eleanor nodded, though he did not look convinced. "None a dis matches wiht what yer mom Mrs. Lamb be sayin', miss."

"Mother's always been like that. She's playing you, officer," Eleanor warned.

"Kinda hard ta believe a _British_ girl who acts so _English._ "

Eleanor looked at him weird, "I'm not British..." _Or, at least I don't self-identify as such..._ Eleanor shuddered at the thought of being anything like Mother.

Helooked back at his notes for a second, then back to Eleanor.

"Y'know, yer mom be an American Ph.D psychiatrist. I be pretty damn sure I can trust her more than ye." Eleanor looked at him weird again. He seems to respect Americans, something Mother would have taken advantage of.

"She's British..."

He clearly did not like the British, something that Eleanor's accent obviously reminded him of. Eleanor could only imagine what Mother had said behind her back.

"Did you...even see Father's body, and the suit he's wearing?" Eleanor asked with a little heat, and felt betrayed. "Talk to the little ones, they will tell you everything." The officer did not seem to care. "Don't you think it's a bit odd that all the children look exactly the same? Officer, everything I said is true, there is no evidence to the contrary."

"Don't change the subject, miss. Ye be a criminal wiht a warrant fer attempted murder."

Eleanor paused, eyes big. Did Mother take this chance just to screw her over?

Ms. Lamb's shoulders raised a little and her gaze lowered. She stroked some hair off her forehead, feeling rather guilty for trying to drown Mother, which Mother had certainly told the authorities about. If only she had actually drowned her...

"I..." Eleanor hesitated.

"What!?"

"I just want to see the little ones," Eleanor requested firmly, making eye contact with the officer. He ignored her and wrote down more notes.

"The girls were taken ta the children's section o' the hospital. We be keepin' em till they be feelin' awlright at the very least," the nurse butted while leaning to Eleanor, who nodded.

"Come wiht me, Ms. Lamb," the officer ordered, Eleanor feeling her blood pressure rise despite frisson. Was she going to jail? Did she escape Rapture just to end up in prison?

The priest noticed Eleanor's expression, and then stepped in front of the policeman.

"Ah c'mon, Constable McDonagh! Give deh girl a break! She's been troo so much!" the priest said, taking another step towards the policeman. "Ya can't just arrest de girl from a single eye witness account, anyway. Testimony o' just one person isn't gonna look good on ya. Fer de love of yer soul, take de time to question the little girls! Do yer investigation properly fer once. Don't risk almost gettin' discharged again, eh?" The officer hesitated.

" _Anglicans_..." the policeman grumbled. He looked at Eleanor, "If wih need anytihn' more, we be comin' back for ya fer more questions." He took his leave, not closing the door behind himself.

"He be goin', but he be comin' back quick," the nurse mumbled as the officer's footfall quietened.

Eleanor sighed with relief, head lowering for a second. She looked at the priest.

"Thanks."

"McDonagh always was a wee bit too quick ta act. Don't take it personally, most o' us ain't like him. Wih tend ta not like de English, but wih don't hate'cha," the doctor remarked. Eleanor nodded.

"I don't know what happened wiht you, but from what I 'eard o' the little girls, can't be anytihn' good," the priest said, truly looking concerned. "I believe ya, Eleanor, every word'ja say, I really do. Can't trust an _American_ woman, y'know, I can see troo her games," he continued, Eleanor giving him a funny look. He must have meant _American_ sarcastically.

"Appreciate it," Ms. Lamb said. Of course, Eleanor could have easily overpowered the policeman, probably not even needing her Plasmids, but she wanted to leave her past in the past. Using Plasmids in plain sight would only create terror, and the police would eventually use lethal force against her, and escalate everything. Of course, the easiest solution, would be to simply teleport out the place.

"Eleanor, methinks it ain't safe fer ya. When McDonagh be comin' back, he sure gonna arrest ya. He ain't a nice guy. Ye should come wiht me, I can offer ya solace in Calry Parish Church," the priest offered.

"What? But...I want to stay with the little ones."

"They be foine wiht us, Eleanor, ye don't have ta worry 'bout anytihn'. Once they're healthy, they'll be going to the orphanage," the nurse promised.

"De orphanage ain't a good place, real bad stories I've been hearin'," the priest warned.

"Where else we gonna put the girls, then? There's always some bad stories 'bout churches n' orphanages, but it can't be too bad," the nurse said. Eleanor was concerned.

"If the little ones go through any more abuse... God help me, the perpetrators will pay," Eleanor warned.

"Eleanor, ya better get out o' here wiht Father Ó Gallachóir, before McDonagh be comein' back. I'll just tell 'im I never saw ye," the doctor said.

"I can't even say goodbye to my little sisters?"

"Ye can, we be figurin' sometihn' out," the priest assured.

Eleanor was surprised by how caring these Irish were, even though they would be breaking the law for her sake. Even though they probably did not believe her story, they trusted her, and wanted to help her. Eleanor did not know what to say.

"Thank you, but...well... I can't go dressed like this." Eleanor snickered at the thought of wandering Ireland in a Big Sister suit. _More than enough attention I got going down the pier. Ha!_

Eleanor soon found herself in a hospital washroom, hands on the sink, head down.

"I never would have imagined myself..." Eleanor mumbled, looking at herself in the mirror, now wearing a cowl and scapular over a tunic, "dressed as a Catholic nun..."

It sure was a good disguise. She looked down to the side, seeing her Big Sister suit, neatly folded up on the floor, her helmet, gloves, boots, and Big Daddy doll nearby. She looked back at the mirror, and chuckled. "If only Mother could see me now."

"Sister Esther, are ya done in there?" an old woman's voice asked outside the washroom, her accent neither too Irish nor too thick. Calling Eleanor by a different name would help her avoid Constable McDonagh.

"Yes, Mother Eilis, on my way," Eleanor replied, taking one last look at her Big Sister outfit. She had no use for it anymore, and could not bring it with her, so she had to leave it behind. She gazed at the Big Daddy doll, sitting on the floor and staring back at her with his buttons-for-eyes. "Don't worry, I won't forget about you... You'll always be with me, Father." She grabbed Little Father and put him in her robe.

Eleanor stepped out the washroom. She felt a little odd dressed as a nun, but at the same time, felt holy and pure, innocent. Mother Eilis (who had provided the clothes) was a petite old lady with blue eyes, hair grey from age. Mother Eilis and some of the Sisters would come down from St John's Parish to the hospital to care for the sick, and now were part of the conspiracy to help Eleanor.

And it worked perfectly.

Eleanor and the Sisters waddled their way past Corporal McDonagh as he spoke to the doctor. He did not notice Eleanor, and she did not even have to act anything out.

"Well, that was easy..."

A while later, Eleanor and the nuns entered a larger room, where the Little Sisters were kept. The children played with various toys, and many of them stopped and looked at Eleanor, most smiling at her.

"Look! Eleanor's a penguin!" a Little Sister exclaimed, several of them giggling at that, including Eleanor and Mother Eilis.

"Aren't they just adorable?" a nun commented.

"They are," Eleanor and Mother Eilis coincidentally said at the same time.

"It's so nice ta look after children. Rest assured we will do everytihn' we can to keep em happy," another nun said, Eleanor nodding, but felt sad that she had to go.

Eleanor approached the little ones, trying not to make puppy dog eyes, but they came anyways. The Little Sisters noticed something amiss with her.

"Eleanor's leaving, for a while."

"What?"

"Why?"

"Big Sister is going? Already?"

"You'd never leave, right?"

"But we just got here..." a Little Sister grumpily pouted.

"What about all these toys? The toys, Eleanor! The toys!" one Little Sister exclaimed, lifting a half-finished Rubix cube in one hand and a retarded-looking teddy bear in the other.

Eleanor felt guilty. She really did not want to leave the little ones behind, but she had no choice for now.

"They're for you. Promise me, you'll be happy while I'm gone?" Eleanor requested sweetly, eyes getting shiny as she patted a Little Sister on the head.

"I promise!"

"Me to!"

"I'll be extra happy, Eleanor, just for you!"

"What?"

"But you'll be back, right?"

"Yes, I'll be back."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

"Oh! Oh, oh!" a Little Sister chirped, the one who handed Eleanor the Big Daddy doll back on the lifeboat. This Little Sister raised her hand, all fingers closed except the pinkie sticking out. "Pinkie promise?" she whispered. Eleanor smiled.

"Yes, Cindy... I pinkie promise." Eleanor hooked her pinkie around the girl's. The little one made eye contact and smiled, Eleanor smiling back. Eleanor's eyes lowered, and she looked sad. The Little Sister's smile gradually faded as Eleanor's hand slipped away, looking like she was about to cry, and left with Father Ó Gallachóir.

* * *

After leaving the hospital, Eleanor followed Father Ó Gallachóir down the street. A few people greeted her as Sister, and the priest as Father. They reached a black 1939 Ford Anglia, a simple 2-door saloon. At first, Eleanor did not know how to react, seeing as this was the first time she saw a car up-close. The priest opened the door for her.

"Please, sit down," the priest said nicely. Eleanor would have preferred a larger car, though. She figured she was a bit too tall for this one. After hesitating, Eleanor took her seat.

While driving down the left lane, Eleanor noticed that the priest often would raise a finger or two off the steering wheel whenever he passed another car, and those in the other cars often did likewise.

"Calry Parish not dat far from 'ere, won't be too long," Father Ó Gallachóir said to break the silence as he turned his car. "Unless I took a wrong turn again." he mumbled.

"Thanks again, Mr. Ó Gallachóir. I really appreciate it."

"Ah, don't mention it. I be a wee bit surproized ye ain't nervous ta be a fugitive."

Eleanor chuckled.

"Let's just say... I'm used to being on the run," Eleanor assured, and then she looked like she wanted to say something, but did not. The priest noticed.

"Sometihn' wrong, Eleanor?"

"Hm? Oh, no, nothing... Was just thinking about a...bad dream."

"Everytihn' you went troo down under is no more, Eleanor, ye be startin' a new life pretty soon."

As the drive continued, Eleanor watched the scenery of people, buildings, trees, and grass. All of this was definitely better than that rusty bucket down below. She then saw a ruined abbey over yonder.

"That be Sligo Abbey, it was destroyed by fire during de Middle Ages. Prime Minister Henry John Temple had it restored in de 1850s, but still, nobody goes dere. Don't look like it's gonna be back in action," Father Ó Gallachóir explained gladly. He seemed quite happy to be with Eleanor.

Eleanor stared at the ruins as the car drove past it. Right after she looked away, she saw something with the corner of her eye, catching only a partial glimpse. Something big and red stood beside a corner of the abbey, looking back at Eleanor. She turned her head, leaning into the window, to get a better look. Whatever the big red thing was, had just stepped behind the corner of the abbey.

"Oh!" Eleanor exclaimed, unsure if she should tell the priest to stop, but it seemed neither he nor anyone else going down the sidewalk had seen the big red thing. Eleanor concluded she was seeing things.

"Oi?"

"Nothing. Thought I saw something."

"Ah. Yeah, an' de cathedral out in Elphin ended up like Sligo Abbey, was nearly destroyed by a horrible storm in 1957 an' abandoned. Not even Vincent Hanly could do anytihn' about it. Dem Catholics be pretty unlucky past while, or maybe God's tryin' ta tell em sometihn'. Ye wouldn't believe some o' de stories I've been hearin' 'bout the orphanage here. Not a place yer sisters should be goin' to."

Eleanor had little idea of what the priest was talking about, but when he mentioned 1957, just one year before the riots broke out... Memories of Rapture flowed through her mind. She recalled how Mother raised her in isolation, as well as the many times she sneaked out of Mother's place.

She pondered about playing with electronics, giving Amir a bleeding nose, Mother being arrested, Eleanor taken to Pauper's Drop to live with Grace, nearly bringing Stanley to justice, ending up in the orphanage, Dr. Alexander, Father, and then, Mother... Eleanor stopped thinking about her past. She wished she could see Amir again, and Father. She felt very lonely.

That evening, Eleanor arrived at Calry Parish Church. It was an Anglican stone church with a stone fence and graveyard with some trees and buildings nearby, built near the road and river going toward the ocean. She had never seen a stone church before, and found the structure to be quite beautiful, especially with the sun low in the sky.

"An' here we are. No way McDonagh will ever find ye here. If ya ever have a problem with de police, dere's solace fer all in de House of God." Father Ó Gallachóir parked his car. Eleanor watched him step out, but when she tried to do the same, she could not figure out how to open the damn door. After a brief struggle, she managed to open it, and got out, looking up at the parish.

"It's beautiful." Eleanor breathed in the ocean air and enjoyed the sunlight and scenery.

"It is, I bet you'd never seen anytihn' like that down under! It's perfect, just like every other church in Ireland, fixed 'r not! C'mon, ya gotta see how it looks."

They entered the church, footfall echoing.

"Y'know, Eleanor," Father Ó Gallachóir spoke, voice slightly echong, "one day, de vaults down under will be renovated into a childcare. Dat's de real meanin' of our faith in action: de importance of little ones. After all, just like Jesus says, we must change ourselves an' be like children, less we never enter the kingdom o' heaven. De Kingdom of God belongs to de little ones."

"And my little ones deserve so much better after what they've been through," Eleanor commented quietly, looking at the large cross behind the altar.

Eleanor was never religious. Not even The Rapture Family could change her. Yet, she did not know if she truly believed in God or not, or if there was any meaning to Christianity or religion. Andrew Ryan sure did not want God ruling his city, though was not opposed to faith kept private. However, up on the surface, religion was clearly a public activity.

"Ya can wait here or outside, or come wiht me ta sit in me residence. Whatever ye choose, I'll be goin' ta visit some friends, see what people I can find ta help ya start yer life anew. Ye can sleep in my place for de night. Chances are, tomorrow we can get everytihn' started," Father Ó Gallachóir said, Eleanor lost in sightseeing and thoughts. "Eleanor?"

"Hm? Oh, I'd rather wait outside, and look at the sun. Thanks for showing me this place." she replied. The priest nodded then started to walk away. Eleanor hesitated.

"Oh, Mr. Ó Gallachóir?" Eleanor called, the priest stopping and turning around. "Why did you believe me? Why are you helping me?" she asked with a serious unblinking expression. The priest paused.

"'Cause me brother went to Rapture." The two silently stared at each other for a few seconds, but neither said anything.

* * *

Outside, at the other side of the church, down a slight hill, was a small grey building on the lawn overlooking the river. This was the residence of the priest, which he was walking to.

Eleanor stood outside, alone with her thoughts, strolling up and down the riverside. Downriver, she saw a mother with three daughters playing on the riverside. Eleanor missed the Little Sisters. She walked away, wiping her eyes.


	6. Chapter 6 - Third Day

Eleanor was sitting up in bed, staring at the moon through the window. She did not know why, but she found the moon to be a wondrous thing to behold. It felt more beautiful and mysterious than the sun. Several times, she tried to lie back down and sleep, but could not. She wanted to stare at the moon. Eventually, sleepiness crept on her, and she fell asleep, Little Father lying beside her head.

* * *

Eleanor awoke the following morning, wearing pyjamas, her bed a bit too small for her. She sat up, eyes dark and puffy, and looked quite haggard. Yawning while stretching, Eleanor took a look at the morning sunlight through the window. She rubbed her eyes.

"And here I thought sleeping on the surface would be really easy..."

Eleanor almost considered preferring being in suspended animation like back in Rapture. At least she did not have sleeping problems. She swung her long legs off the bed and got up, bones popping, and she stretched again like a sleepy cat, and took a breath.

When Eleanor opened her eyes, she noticed a silhouette on the floor, looking like a big head with two tapering curves going upward at either side. She turned around to see if there was a peeping tom outside her window. She did not see who stood outside her window, as the person had just walked away, though Eleanor saw the silhouette of a large surface block the entire window for a moment.

Eyebrows furrowed, Eleanor pulled the curtains aside and opened the window, looking down both ways. Nothing. However, the grass was obviously bent, as if some huge animal walked over and disappeared.

"If you do spy on me again, I will hurt you." Eleanor slammed the window shut.

Eleanor left her room, now wearing attire suitable for the 1960s: short baggy jacket, short-sleeved shirt, socks, stiletto high heels, and mini skirt, reminding her of mother's clothes a little. Eleanor shuddered at the thought of looking like Mother, but she had to dress normally for once in her life. The only change she decided to make was to put her hair in a ponytail. The clothes were brought to the church last night by Mother Eilis, who was always dutiful and caring.

"Eleanor? Ye ready?" Father Ó Gallachóir called from afar.

"Yes, Mr. Ó Gallachóir, I'm coming." Eleanor grabbed Little Father from the bed and put him in her pocket.

Eleanor followed Father Ó Gallachóir to the lounge.

"Oh, Eleanor, someone phoned fer ya. Phone's over dere." The priest gestured to a rotary dial telephone. Eleanor was surprised. Who could have known she was here? Mother? The police? She picked up the phone, a little nervous.

"Hello?" Eleanor spoke, and heard the other person sigh from relief.

"Eleanor? Oh! So good to hear you again!" a woman's voice with a thick accent spoke.

"Oh my God!" Eleanor exclaimed, letting her head drop but grinning. She also sighed from relief. "I thought you were dead, Tenenbaum, I couldn't find you."

"Likewise. I am sorry for disappearing back in Rapture, but I had to help another, and other little ones," Tenenbaum explained.

"I understand. I am so glad to hear from you again. Thank you so much for being there for me when I was...little." A pause. The lady must have felt a rush of peace, or regret, of her past.

"Welcome, child. Thank you, too, for helping me end my sins, once and for all. Rapture is forever buried at sea, and we can begin life anew."

"Yes...yes we can." Eleanor agreed, then Father popped in her head. She felt a rush of loneliness and regret. _If only Father could be with me..._

"You could not hide from news, you know?" Tenenbaum teased.

"Whatever Mother said in her interview I can only imagine."

"I did not bother watching. But, Eleanor, I am so sorry Delta did not make it."

"Father... Father sacrificed himself so that I could be reborn and free. I will not let his conscious go to waste. Don't despair, Brigid, you did everything you could. We are free now," Eleanor comforted, fighting the urge to cry.

"I do not think I will ever let go of my guilt. I will create cure for ADAM Sickness soon. But Eleanor, I will be flying to Sligo from London. Sligo does not have scheduled flights, but I be there tomorrow sometime. I go to Nazareth House orphanage when I can for the little ones. Then... if all goes as planned, we all fly back to London. See you soon, Eleanor."

"Yes, see you soon. But Tenenbaum, how did you know I was here? How did you get this phone number?" Eleanor asked.

"I tell you later. Please, just enjoy your time, stay safe. Bye-bye."

"Buh-bye."

The phone call ended.

"Sounds like Rapture really did her in," the priest remarked.

"Yes, for over a decade. Tenenbaum will be coming sometime tomorrow, so I have one more day and night to hide, but..." Eleanor replied, turning around. She crossed her arms and lowered her head. "I don't want to stay cooped up in here. I want to go do something."

"Oh, yeah. I phoned some friends, Eleanor. At first, dey were gonna come 'n getcha and help ya out. But when dey get here, we'll tell em ye gots yerself covered. Still, they've got a kid who'd love ta see ya. I bet ye can have a good day wiht em."

"Did you tell them I am a fugitive?"

"Dey don't need ta know everytihn'!" Father Ó Gallachóir stated in good humour. "Don't be o'fraid, Constable McDonagh's got a bad reputation. No one in deh force is gonna believe him anytime soon anyways, I hope."

Eleanor slightly tilted her head and made a self-satisfied sneaky smile, "Oh, I'm not afraid of him. Don't worry about me, Mr. Ó Gallachóir."

"Heh heh, okay, den, Eleanor. If ye can handle Rapture, ye can handle anytihn' else fer sure."

"Speaking of Rapture, what's your story?" Eleanor asked.

"Oh, I never went, only me brother. He never came back. I told him not ta go, but he never listened. God rest his soul," Father Ó Gallachóir replied.

"I'm sorry." It was very unlikely anyone else made it out of Rapture, especially now.

"Nohtin' compared to what ye've been troo. But, well...it's gonna get worse before it get's better. Has always been like dat 'n Ireland!" the priest remarked with good humour, Eleanor also smiling from that. The Irish sure knew how to smile despite their problems.

"Thanks again, Mr. Ó Gallachóir, for everything."

"Aw, don't mention it. It's what we Irish do. C'mon, me friend should be here pretty soon."

Later, a car drove to the church, Eleanor and Father Ó Gallachóir waiting outside, Ms. Lamb fixing her annoying shoe. The vehicle was a dark red Jaguar, XJ6, and Ms. Eleanor immediately liked it. She attentively stared at the sexy car as it parked nearby, and an equally sexy young man stepped out, a tall, fit, amber-eyed redhead dressed semi-formally but not having a hat or sports jacket. The young man did not seem to care about anything. The passenger, the father, wore a brown suit and a hat, and was also a redhead. He stepped out and shook hands with the priest.

"Hey, Cullen, ya sweeney! Been a while!" the father greeted the priest, having a much softer accent but a deeper voice. They must have been friends for a long time.

"Good ta see ya, Brian! This yer new gal?" the priest asked.

"Yeah, brand new Jaguar! Model released this month. Ain't she a beauty?" the father replied, and then the two started talking about cars and things about cars, and car things.

Eleanor looked at the young man, who seemed disinterested and minded his own business. She stepped to him.

"So, you're the one rescuing me?" He gave her a weird look. _Smooth move, Eleanor..._

"And yer de girl frum Rapture, who needs help frum corrupt ol' McDonagh. Yer much taller den I expected. Nice big eyes, too."

Eleanor slightly smiled and her eyes filled with curiosity. Unlike his father, the young man had an obviously pronounced Irish accent. After her pause, Eleanor nodded to his question. She wasn't sure what to say.

"Um, yeah..."

"Oh? Maybe ye can take me divin' soon, den," he remarked, Eleanor chuckling. She liked his accent, and his face. "Still, don't believe de place is real."

"Huh... I can hardly believe the surface is real. Ever since I was little, I always wanted to see the sun. Spent all night staring at the moon, though," Eleanor said, and Amber-eyes looked at her weird again. _Embarrassed yourself again, Eleanor..._

The look of her face made the young man chuckle. Flirting definitely was not a skill she had, at least since she gave Amir a bloody nose.

"Ye sure sound like a crazy person," the young man remarked. Eleanor held in a chuckle.

"Did you not see the news?" Eleanor asked.

"Ye, not all ah it doh. Just saw a buncha lil' girls talkin' 'bout peepers an' angels. Also saw a big guy wiht a big helmet...reminded me o' a spacesuit."

"Big Daddy diving suit," Eleanor corrected.

"Oh, big daddy, eh? Did he take ye divin' and go real deep wiht ya?"

It took Eleanor a second to get it. She narrowed her eyes.

"That's my father."

"Oh, ya? When yer big daddy went divin' real deep, did ye both get real wet?"

Eleanor paused with an emotionless stare, keeping unblinking eye contact.

Father Ó Gallachóir finished talking to Brian, and the two old chaps turned their heads, just in time to see Eleanor punch her friend in the face. Amber-eyes reared and staggered against the car, holding the bridge of his nose, grimacing while blood trickled out his nostrils.

The sharp, cracking pain fumed out his skull, as if his nose was a conduit for pain. Cross-eyed for a second, he looked back at an angry Eleanor. Her punch was much, much stronger than he expected.

"Ah, young love's sweet, ain't it?" Ó Gallachóir remarked.

"Cathal's a true Mac Ruaidhrí in findin' a good woman!" Brian joked, and then the two old chaps went back to talking to each other as if nothing had happened.

* * *

Eleanor found herself grumpily sitting in the back of the Jaguar, arms crossed, and looking out the window. Amber-eyes sat in the passenger seat, head back, holding his nose with a handkerchief. His father drove the car.

"Y'know, for a British girl, you're quite Irish," Brian complimented, trying to hold in a chuckle. Eleanor said nothing. She was not British, at least not officially. She was not even born in a country, but people assumed quite a lot based on an accent.

 _Why do people keep thinking I'm British?_

"Well! Looks like we need ta relax, hunh? Today's September 27th, there be horseracing soon, I think that's a good place ta start fer you two ta let off some steam," Brian purposed.

 _September? Huh. Five months till my birthday..._

* * *

Later, Eleanor stood at the Sligo Racecourse nearby a crowd of people. The course was a mile long, and had twelve horsemen racing along, sometimes jumping over obstacles. Once the horses past, most of the excitement was over. She figured the horses were trained for stamina, seeing as they made a few laps each race. A few horses could not finish the race, and their riders led them off.

Eleanor was briefly interested at first, having never seen horses before. Though, watching horses running around and around and around and around and around was not very exciting, at least not compared to her underwater ordeals. She did not like how the riders whipped their horses, and a few riders struck their steeds quite hard and frequently, though they were the ones leading the race. Everyone else in the audience enjoyed themselves, shouting, clapping and cheering.

"How's de race?" Amber-eyes asked as he walked to Eleanor, she not even looking at him. He extended an arm, getting her attention. He offered her an ice cream cone, and had one for himself. She looked into his eyes, and he made a cute little smile. After a pause, Eleanor slowly accepted the gift, scowling. She slowly retracted her arm to enjoy her ice cream.

"Yer welcome. Still grumpy?" Cathal asked with a chuckle, but Eleanor did not reply. "Y'know, me pa was involved 'n some smugglin' 'r wha wiht some Fontaine fella years ago. Guess Rapture be real, den."

"Mhm."

"Ice cream good?"

"Mhm," she admitted. It sure was way better than the ice cream from Rapture, and Eleanor caught herself eating up her ice cream rather quickly and greedily. She got some ice cream above her lip, and she noticed Cathal staring. So, she lowered her ice cream cone and wiped her face, a little embarrassed. She would eat slowly now.

"If ye really want s'more cream ta lick up, I can help ye wiht dat pretty soon," Amber-eyes remarked.

All of a sudden, Eleanor did not really want to eat ice cream anymore, shoulders dropping. But the ice cream was so damn good, and this prick ruined it. Why did she even like him when she first saw him?

"I thought ye liked ice cream?" he asked, sensing her despair.

"Cathal, can you please stop talking to me?"

"Aww...even after I got ye an ice cream cone?" he artificially whined, then rose his ice cream to eat. Eleanor did him a favour, quickly pushing his elbow up so that his ice cream smooshed over his face and nose. His eyes widened and he reared his head, partly from the cold, partly from a little pain left over from earlier. He looked at Eleanor, face half-covered with ice cream.

Eleanor blushed and giggled. Eleanor enjoyed her ice cream, gently and slightly tilting her shoulders back and forth. Horses ran by in their next lap.

Eleanor realized she had changed a little. No more was she thinking about Rapture. She was still sad about losing Father and not being with the Little Sisters, and felt some worry from the priest's warning of the orphanage. Yet, Eleanor felt happy, free, relieved from pain, at least for now. Or maybe it was just the ice cream.

As the race finished, the leading rider galloped by the cheering crowd.

"An' we have 'r winner!" the announcer shouted, Eleanor noticing that the winner was a rather tall, older man with gray hair and green eyes. Once he got his hose to a stop, he reared, keeping balance in the stirrups, cheered by the crowd. "An' 'ere he is! Brock Devitt! Takin' first place!" the announcer continued.

"Huh! Wasn't even close! Dat new guy sure is quite de rider, contrary ta 'is age," Cathal remarked. "Heard he was 'n American soldier, too."

Eleanor did not know why, but she imagined Father as the winner, a heroic, middle-aged man in shining golden armour under rays of shimmering sunshine.

"Dere's still some m'r races, want s'more ice cream?" Cathal asked. Eleanor looked at him.

 _How old does he think I am? Six?_ Eleanor thought to herself with a frown. _But..._

"Yeah, actually...get me some more ice cream, now."

Eleanor and Cathal had their second ice cream cones, and they observed the race. Unlike Cathal, Eleanor did not get much of a reaction. Seemed like she was the only one not overreacting to the riders.

After a few races, Eleanor felt rather bored. If only Father could be with her, or riding one of the racehorses for her to watch.

"So, what's yer name, again?" Amber-eyes asked suddenly, who had a hunch that the girl was bored.

"E-" Eleanor hesitated, noticing an off-duty cop nearby, who looked rather familiar. Eleanor looked at Cathal. "Esther."

"Esther? Dat's a real nice name."

"It is, isn't it? Will we be goin' soon, Cathal? I'd rather move on ta somethin' else, now, ah?" Eleanor spoke with a surprisingly good Dublin accent. Cathal looked at her, rather surprised.

"Hm? Oh, ye, alright. Let's go find pa, he probably be gamblin' somewheres."

Eleanor followed Cathal, keeping her face away from the off-duty McDonagh.

"And thanks for bringin' me here, Cathal, really appreciate it, ah?" Eleanor continued as she passed the constable, walking closely beside Cathal. Once again, she bypassed the constable easily. _This is too easy. If I started using Plasmids in the crowd, I wonder what would have happened... Ha!_

"Yer talkin' pretty good now, sound a bit like a sweeney frum down east, eh?" Cathal complimented. Eleanor smiled at him and flicked her hair.

Cathal and Eleanor soon went back to the Jaguar, as he could not find his dad.

"Eh! Cathal, where ya goin'?" Cathal's dad called, appearing out the crowd, grasping a handful of dollars he was probably going to gamble with. His son turned around and shrugged.

"Well, where d'ya tihnk?" Cathal exclaimed, gesturing to Eleanor.

"Oh, right! Have fun! I'll be going with some friends after the race, anyways," Brian said.

"Father just lets you do whatever you want?" Eleanor asked, a little surprised.

"Ya!" Cathal replied, opening the Jaguar, car keys carelessly left in the ignition.

"My father was like that, too," Eleanor said proudly, moving some hair away from her eyes as she sat down in the passenger seat. Making herself comfortable and putting on the seatbelt, Eleanor looked at Cathal, watching him fire up the Jaguar. The beast roared to life, Eleanor smiled.

"So, where to?"

"I tihnk I'll drive around town, show ye around. Ye really gotta know de place, eh?"

"Fair enough."

So Cathal drove around Sligo, showing Eleanor the town. She noticed that, often, whenever Cathal drove passed oncoming traffic, like the priest, he would briefly raise a finger or two off the steering wheel, and the other drivers often did the same.

"Cathal?" Eleanor asked.

"Ye?"

"Remember when I said my name was Esther? It isn't. I lied to you because I saw Constable McDonagh at the racetrack, and did not want him to possibly notice me. My real name is Eleanor."

"Oh? An' here I was tihnkin' 'bout how nice de name Esther was... I'll try ta remember ye as Eleanor."

The centre of Sligo was rather medieval at times, and Eleanor found such architexture peculiar. She wondered about castles underwater...

Cathal drove along the river and through streets, and went here and there and over yonder, talking nonstop about this and that. When Cathal drove to the railway station, he slowed down a bit.

"See dat? Me granddaddy helped blow up de railway station in 1923 during de civil war," Cathal explained proudly.

"Oh, that's cute," Eleanor remarked, thinking about how she and father singlehandedly fought through Rapture a few days ago. "Anymore family history?"

"Hmm... heard dat de author a' _Dracula_ , Bram Stoker, dat his grandma lived 'n Sligo. Been tihnkin' dat maybe we've got a correlation 'ere! Yer skin's pretty pale and ye have dark 'air, after all!"

"I'm a vampire," Eleanor commented nonchalantly. Cathal chuckled.

"Ye'd be a really cool vampire! Good at suckin'," Cathal remarked.

"If you meant that as another innuendo... This vampire's gonna bite your head off."

Cathal chuckled, "Noted."

For the next few hours, Cathal continued driving around talking about nothing, Eleanor occasionally nodding or mumbling acknowledgement of some sort. Cathal did not seem to notice Eleanor's lack of interest. She preferred to stare at the sun.

"So, what next?" Eleanor asked, taking her eyes off the sunset. Cathal slightly narrowed his eyes and gave her a suspicious look. She returned her own suspicious look.

"I gots ta show ye sometihn' real, real important. Maybe de most important tihn' in awl Ireland. Sometihn' so imporant, dat we Irish've been doin' it fer countless generations..." Cathal explained, Eleanor wondering what he meant.

The car stopped at a street near the river, and Eleanor followed Cathal into a building. All of a sudden, Eleanor heard glass clinking against glass, traditional Irish music, laughing, and occasional table-smacking. She did not know where Cathal led her to, but she was not sure if she liked this place.

 _So, what was the most important thing in Ireland?_ Eleanor thought to herself as Cathal walked past her, then he turned around, arms up.

"Beer!"


	7. Chapter 7 - Just an Irish Pub

This riverside pub looked quite nice, definitely unlike what she had seen in Rapture. Eleanor figured it was better than going shopping or some other girly thing she could never care about. Most men were drinking lager, but others drank stout, porter, or cider.

"Beer," Eleanor commented with a crooked face. Amber-eyes nodded.

The traditional Irish music was nice to listen to, consisting of a few fiddlers and guitarist, the musicians clearly after a few drinks. Irish tunes were upbeat and happy, not so slow and static like the music in Rapture, and _real_.

Cathal and Eleanor sat at an empty table. She kept quiet. But she had to be optimistic, there was no way this pub could be as bad as Dionysus Park. She saw a few other girls, and all of them were older than her. Some guys checked her out, which she did not like.

"Take it as a compliment," Cathal remarked. "So, what'd ya like ta drink?"

Two tall mugs soon appeared via barmaid, Eleanor with a stout, and Cathal with a lager. She never drank before.

"Cheers!" Cathal nearly shouted, and the two tapped glasses and started chugging.

Eleanor figured ADAM also provided her with some resistance to alcohol, seeing as she did not feel much, or maybe she really was just like Father? While alcoholic foam bubbled against her nose, the dark beer felt quite refreshing, tasting like heavy bread with a strong scent and aftertaste. Eleanor and Cathal drank about a third of their mug and put them down on the table.

"Feelin' alright?"

"Mhm."

"Ohhh! Ye'd make a good drinker fer sure!" Cathal remarked, Eleanor smiled with a titter.

For the next hour or so, Eleanor mostly listened to Cathal talking about his future plans. The sun had set and nighttime approached, but Eleanor was not uneasy anymore. With some alcohol in her belly and bloodstream, she felt pleased, easy, and relaxed, finding the folk musicians' tunes fun to listen to. At times, she would only pretend to listen to Cathal, nodding every now and then. When she looked down, she realized there were four empty mugs in front of her and Cathal.

"...dere's just no work in Sligo. Everyone's been sailin' ta America 'r Canada. Was tihnkin' a' goin' ta New York. We Irish basically built dat city, I'd bet dere's lots of opportunities dere. God willin' I'll reach de city." Eleanor nodded cluelessly at Cathal's voice, but then she snapped out of her passiveness.

"New York?" Eleanor asked, did that sound familiar for some reason?

"Ya. Me pa's at times worried 'bout me, kinda ticks me off. I keep tellin' 'im, I'm a' take all me money frum de bank an' set sail fer New York wiht me friends. Barry an' Patrick knows sum Irish-Americans who'd hire us fer labour work, perfect fer a tough sweeney like me."

"Oh? Heh heh, I also considered going ta New York wiht me mom," Eleanor commented, not even noticing the west Irish accent slowly creeping up on her.

"Ah, yeah? Must be a good sign, den. New York it'll be!" Cathal exclaimed, finishing his fifth lager. Once he put the mug down, he noticed Eleanor chugging the last of her fifth stout. "Ye like de dark stuff, eh? Suits yer dark hair," he remarked, Eleanor putting the mug down but keeping her hand on it, and stared at Cathal with a sloshed face. Her face was a little numb and loose, mouth slightly open, upper eyelids a little low, breathing through her mouth. "Oh? Need a sixth round, eh?"

"Actually... I have ta use de little girl's room..." Eleanor said, Cathal watching her go. Her gait was not as solid as she expected, nearly bumping into a barmaid serving drinks. Cathal chuckled.

When Eleanor walked back, two young women and two young men had appeared at the table. She did not like this, but Cathal was chatting away gladly with the four young adults. A barmaid had just taken the empty glasses.

"Oohh! Yoorr deh Brritish girrl, eh?" one of the young women exclaimed, a short blondie. She had a thick Scottish accent, her voice rather deep contrary to her short stature, obviously drunk.

"What? I'm not British. I was born in Rapture, not Britain," Eleanor replied in her usual tone, and she took her seat opposite of Cathal, briefly struggling in her chair.

"Oh, Cathal not be lyin' but be serious! He did find a British girl!" one of the young men said, Eleanor giving him a weird look. What did she have to do for people to stop calling her British?

"Heh! I was just talkin' 'bout Patrick an' Barry, Esther! Sons o' bitches be here now wiht us!" Cathal remarked, the two young men nodding to Eleanor when their names were spoken. Patrick was taller than Cathal, and Barry shorter than Cathal but stocky, quite the bulldog of a fellow.

"Oohh! Yoorr name's Esther, huh? What a nice name dat is, uh?" the Scottish girl said.

"It's Eleanor..." Eleanor corrected.

"Ya! Shoorr is! Esther be a good name fer ya, yeah..." the Scottish girl said, trailing off into mumbles, drowned out by chugging cider.

"Don't mind Cindy, she's always like dat. Esther, this is me girlfriend, Aideen." Patrick said, the other young woman nodding, but she seemed uninterested in Eleanor. Aideen had brown hair and green eyes, and was quite an attractive, quiet young lady with curves. The name Aideen reminded Eleanor of her middle name, Althea.

"Who's payin' de next round?" Barry asked, and then everyone looked at Eleanor. They paused for a few seconds.

"Not me!" Eleanor replied, slightly tilting her head and making a crooked little smile.

The next round of drinks came, but Eleanor was surprised to find out that the cups were rather small. There were two whiskey bottles on the table, and Eleanor had no idea where they came from.

"Just what we needed, some good Jameson Irish Whiskey!" Cathal stated eagerly.

"Whiskey frrom Corrk be better, doh," Cindy remarked.

"No it ain't," Patrick rebuked.

Everyone raised their glasses, so Eleanor did likewise, smelling the strong scent of whiskey burn her nostrils. The hard liquor filled her mouth and she swallowed, feeling it burn her throat, esophagus and stomach. Her eyebrows furrowed, then her eyes got big, and she shook her head.

" _Uh-huh-huh-huh-uh..._ " Eleanor quivered, closing her eyes tightly and lowering her chin as her face contorted, everyone laughing at her. Eleanor felt that even her stomach, shoulders and spine writhed from the liquor, and she got sick and began coughing. Everyone laughed again.

"First-time drinkin' whiskey?" Cathal asked, Eleanor nodded. "Ya, don't ye drink it all at once," he advised, sipping his drink.

Suddenly, someone at the other end of the pub yelled. A few at a table stood up, one of them pushed the table over and spilling cards and drinks, and a fight broke out. Most nearby pubgoers just laughed, even the barmaids, and the musicians continued playing music.

"Ooo! Some lil' bitch lost ta cards!" Cathal yelled as the fight was broke apart by a few friends and the pub owner, a big, burly fellow with a full beard.

"Cathal, no, don't be like that..." Eleanor said quietly, pleading with her eyes, but Cathal did not care.

"Shut de foohk up!" one of the rabble-rousers yelled.

"How 'bout ya come here n' make me ya foohkin' lil' cunt!" Cathal yelled back, and the rabble-rouser wriggled forth through those holding him and charged Cathal.

Cathal, Barry, Patrick, and Cindy immediately got up and stepped forth. Cathal walked forth and threw the first punch, hitting the rabble-rouser in the head, but at the same time, Cathal received a cross to the mouth and staggered. The two then grappled, pulling each other down while sending uppercuts.

Patrick and Barry jumped in just as the rabble-rouser's buddies ran to the scene, both sides exchanging a flurry of punches. Cindy waltzed in the from the side and struck one of the men with a whiskey bottle, dashing out blood.

Eleanor and Aideen sat silently, looked at each other, and they shrugged at the same time. They both had another shot of whiskey. When they finished, somehow, the entire pub had become an arena, though the musicians kept on playing. Tables and chairs flipped over, glasses and cards danced in the air, chairs and bottles flew about, people were being punched and tossed around, and even the barmaids were throwing punches and pulling on hair.

Aideen and Eleanor made eye contact again, and then Aideen clasped her hands beside her chin, smiled, and cocked her head, "Welcome ta Ireland!" she chirped, then drank Patrick's unfinished whiskey glass. Rolling up her sleeves, she got up and joined the fray.

Eleanor just poured herself more whiskey, filling her glass to the rim. Raising the glass to her lips, taste buds and nostrils tingling, and spilling a little liquor, Eleanor swallowed a mouthful of whiskey.

"Wow, I really am like my dad..." Eleanor said to herself, the whiskey burning her insides and scrunching up her face. Throwing the glass away and hearing it shatter, Eleanor stood, fired up from whiskey. She kicked her high-heels off and ran toward the brawl.

Cathal still fought the rabble-rouser, both their noses bleeding. Amber-eyes managed to grab the rabble-rouser around the waist, lift him, then slam him against a table. Holding the rabble-rouser down, Cathal then started headbutting his opponent in the face, blood smearing over their foreheads and hair.

Some guy hit Cathal in the head with a bottle, the bottle breaking at the neck. Blood leaking out his scalp, Cathal rolled around and push kicked his attack on the sternum, staggering him. Cathal got up, getting a rushing feeling as more blood poured out. His next foe tackled into his midsection, and Cathal's back scraped against the edge of the table.

Cathal's opponent mounted him and started feeding him punches, and then two more men came and started kicking him in the sides. Raising his elbows to shield himself, Cathal swung hammer punches sideways repeatedly, but the throbbing pain and gushing blood debilitated him. Knuckles thudded against Cathal's face, but then Eleanor appeared, and the two men kicking Cathal fell one after the other. The man who mounted Cathal looked up, and then Eleanor clocked him across the temple, instantly knocking him out. Eleanor did, after all, have broad, heavy-looking knuckles, plus the brute power of a Big Sister.

"C'mon, get up, Cathal!" Eleanor yelled, grabbing Cathal's hand and pulling him up to his feet, the Big Sister surprising Cathal by how strong she was. The two were now face-to-face, and they paused. Eleanor calmed down, just staring into Amber-eyes' amber eyes, his bloody face still cute. "You smell like roses." Eleanor remarked.

"You smell like whiskey," Cathal commented, and then the brawling mass tornadoed into them, pulling them apart.

Eleanor spun around, smacking aside a chair thrown at her direction. She darted forth with the reflexes and quickness of a ferret, headbutting a guy in the head and he fell over.

"I think you're trying not to cry!" Eleanor stated gladly.

Cathal got a few more punches to the face, but he returned a few of his own, knocking his foe down. He would have been swarmed by multiples, but Patrick and Barry appeared and knocked his attackers down. A sneaky punch to the back of the head took Cathal down, but he picked himself up, seeing Cindy screaming and thrashing at the pub owner.

Cathal regained himself, wiping the blood from his eyes. He looked at Eleanor, and paused with a crooked face at what he was seeing. Eleanor was throwing hook punches wildly, knocking down adult men in single blows. Eleanor's face withstood punches, yet she barely flinched.

"Boring. Come back with some stronger friends," Eleanor commented after beating down several men. The Big Sister grabbed some guy and threw him down against the wall. She then grabbed a whiskey bottle that happened to be nearby and rammed it into the man's mouth, forcing him to drink.

"Drown like Rapture!" Eleanor yelled with good humour.

Someone hit Eleanor in the head with their own whiskey bottle, breaking at the neck, but Eleanor remained unflinching. She left the bottle in the man's mouth, and then kicked her bottle-wielding attacker in the chest and he was down. Eleanor did not know why, but she kicked the bottle she left in the man's mouth, shattering it. She chuckled.

Re-entering the brawl, Eleanor threw a hook punch into a man's shoulder, and he instantly writhed from pain, arm disabled. Eleanor then struck her elbow across his head and he fell, skull leaking blood.

"Ugh, you little bastard... I'm so disappointed..." Eleanor commented, "But who's next!" she yelled, noticing that Aideen was having trouble with a barmaid. Aideen was grabbed by the hair and fed punches, so Eleanor quickly approached them, grabbing the barmaid by the head and throwing her against the floor.

"Ugh! Thanks!" Aideen said, Eleanor nodded, then went back to the fighting.

Despite their drunkenness, the brawlers quickly realized something was strangely amiss with the tall baby-faced girl in socks. Most men did not want to fight the girl, but when she hurt them, they had to defend themselves. She did receive some damage, bleeding at both eyebrows, cheeks swollen, and nose red, but clearly was not going down.

"Yes, yes! Make it last!" Eleanor exclaimed as she fought, then laughed. While she laughed, a big guy punched her across the jaw, and her jawbone shifted with an audible crack. Eleanor tilted from pain, but remained on her feet, from a punch that would clearly have knocked out a big man and a few teeth. She then punched the big guy across the jaw and he hit the floor. "Aww... you were doing so well."

"Keep it up, Esther! Yer doin' great!" Cathal called from within the brawl somewhere, Eleanor laughing as the fight avalanched along...

* * *

The fiddlers and guitarist finished their music passionately, expecting applause. They paused, then looked at the audience, realizing that basically everyone was lying unconscious on broken tables or the floor. Only Eleanor, Cathal, Cindy, Patrick, Barry and Aideen were sitting, at their table, Eleanor beside Cathal. The pub owner was casually wiping blood and booze off his counter, occasionally drinking whiskey.

"Irish whiskey...de best tihn' dat ever came from planet Earth," the pub owner said to himself.

"Eh, Esther, ye deserve dis... Well done, ye sure got some pretty damn good knuckle-power," Cathal said, sliding a beer mug full of whiskey to Eleanor. Cathal and his friends were all bruised and bloodied. Eleanor, Aideen and Cindy had slightly ripped shirts and jackets, but they did not seem to care. Eleanor's knuckles were shredded, bloodied, and swollen.

"Uhh yeah, like... Uh-hunh..." Eleanor mumbled, clearly drunk out of her skull. Blood dripping out her eyebrows and nose, she grabbed the mug and raised it, some of her blood leaking into it, but she drank anyways.

Her friends watched in horror as Eleanor chugged the entire mug of whiskey, then slammed the mug down on the table, glass shattering. Eleanor leaned to the side a little, head tilting, mouth open, and she breathed rather softly and slowly through her mouth. Her breath felt like acid.

"Yer not gonna puke?" Aideen squeaked, amazed, Eleanor slowly looking at her.

"I think... I'm going... to die..." Eleanor mumbled, wondering if her belly—now a cauldron of whiskey, would just melt her guts.

"See? I said she be a good drinker!" Cathal exclaimed.

Eleanor slowly looked at him, "I love you."

"I love ye, too." Cathal replied, then sipped some whiskey.

When Eleanor looked around, she noticed the musicians had seated themselves at the counter and got drinks from the pub owner.

"Hey, Esther, so what's up wiht ya? Cathal was talkin' bout ye in trouble wiht de law, 'n dat ye come frum some creepy pace?" Barry asked.

"Hmm? Ohhh, it's a long, _lll_ ong story. I don't really want ta talk 'bout it. I wanna leave it all behind. Ye wouldn't believe any o' it," Eleanor replied, suddenly seeming to recover a little.

"C'mon, Esther! Talk to us! Yer almost as quiet as Aileen!" Patrick encouraged, Aideen chuckling.

"Well... I guess ah doo have some stories ta say. It's been just a few days 'r so, but it feels like forever since I escaped Rapture..." Eleanor said, then she began to tell her story, already knowing none of it would be believed. Just like in the hospital, she would paraphrase everything.

As she told the story, Eleanor's mind faded out here and there, and she did not really know what was going on, or who was speaking, or at times what she was even saying. But, drunks listening to a drunk usually did not complain, and whatever communication formed, was good enough.

"Raised studying philosophy an' psychology?"

"Yeah, it was total hell."

"An' ye could sneak out like dat n' all?"

"Uh-hunh."

"Whoa, ya shoorr sound like a rreal smarrt little lady! Education _and_ electronics! I can't even change a lightbulb."

"Dog-eaters? Wah-hah-hah! Imagine a little girl sayin' other kids be dog-eaters! Ohh-hoh-hoh-ha ha ha!"

"Ha! Yer like yer ma, in trouble wiht de law."

"Good point, I am like me ma, in trubble wiht de law an' all, heh heh..."

"Dat's quite a lot a' names n' places ye've been ta, I'm surprised ye 'member all dat bullshit frum yer childhood."

"I gots a good memory, ah?"

"Ugh! I can't believe you got sold off to an orphanage..."

"It wasn't fun."

"Yer ma escaped frum jail?"

"She was very smart, that's when..." Eleanor paused, not wanting to tell her friends this next part. The memories hurt her. Cathal, Cindy, Barry and Patrick paused when Eleanor told them how Father killed himself in front of little Eleanor. She lowered her head.

"Wait, how did yer mom get yer dad ta shoot himself?"

"Plasmids."

"Hunh? How do dey work?"

"Well, dey add new genetic information, and...allows ya ta do stuff? And stuff..."

"I can't believe ye watched yer dad shoot himself on New Years' Eve..."

"What a way ta celebrate de end of de year."

"It haunted me."

"I'd bet."

"Hunh, so dat's how she got inta power, den?"

"Yes, Mother came ta power like dat... Now, I'll tell you all me adventures in findin' out 'bout pa 'n ma and what I 'ad ta do..." The adventures with Father, and their escape from Rapture, was bittersweet for Eleanor. At times she wanted to cry, but held back the tears.

"She was smart, me Mother, she knew Father was coming for me. Wanted ta accelerate the conditioning she had in store for me, but of course, thah bitch failed."

"Crrazy stuff, Eleanor! Real crrazy! Did dey really kidnap kids all 'round de world?"

"Yeah... She's a total psychopath."

"Yer mom sounds like a total bitch! No offence."

"None taken, that's why I tried to drown her."

"I would 'ave drowned dat cunt."

"My hands were shaking, I couldn't do it. I loved Mother, I really did. I couldn't kill her." Delving into the past ended her Irish accent. "But, and...and Father showed me how to forgive, but, but he...he chose to die, so that I could be free. I felt so hurt by what he decided, but... that's what he chose. I don't know why." Eleanor felt tears coming. She wept. She sniffled, rubbing her eyes, and kept her head low. "I really didn't want any of you to see me cry," Eleanor admitted, breathing slowly and deeply, shoulders going up and down, but that just encouraged more crying. Her head dropped.

"Aww...so killer-girlie does have a soft spot," Cathal remarked.

"She sure does," Barry agreed.

"I think I'm gonna cry, too..." Patrick whimpered.

"Aww, dat's so sad...de second time ye met yer pa, after all dat, and ye had ta watch him die again," Aideen said.

"And here I am. Just as I said to Father, I... I will be alone," Eleanor said. "I just know it..."

"Yer not alone, Esther! We're here for ya. We're yer friends," Cathal comforted, putting a hand on Eleanor and rubbing her back.

Eleanor felt much better, "Don't stop."

"There ya go."

Eleanor stayed quiet for a while, letting her friends mumble about things. Once Cathal finished rubbing her, Eleanor looked at him.

"My story about Rapture...do you believe me?" Eleanor asked, head slowly swaying. She was not sure how long she would remain awake.

"Sure we do!" Cathal almost yelled, but Eleanor figured everyone being drunk was the reason they believed her. Though, they all seemed ready to go to sleep.

Eleanor yawned and stretched, then paused with a frown. She lunged sideways over the chair.

" _Ooowahhh!_ " What was worse than drinking hard liquor the first time? Releasing a bellyful of burning, alcoholic puke. Eleanor's buddies laughed at her.

Once Eleanor finished barfing, she spat into the puddle of puke. For some reason, amidst the sour disgust and alcohol, Eleanor also smelt a tinge of roses. While her friends kept laughing, she felt another round rising. Another round of puking. Another round of laughter.

"Sorry... What time is it?" Eleanor asked while wiping her mouth, but her friends shrugged.

"Does it really matter? I tihnk we all need ta go ta bed..." Barry said, rubbing his temples.

"Yeah, good idea..." Cindy mumbled, letting her head drop and thud against the table.

Cathal noticed Eleanor staring at him with sad eyes.

"What?"

"Do you think I'm crazy?"

"Ya, yer pretty crazy."

"Awesome!" Eleanor exclaimed with a big smile, then she turned her head, as did Cathal, Barry, Patrick and Aideen, and they noticed a dozen police officers walk into the pub.

"What de foohk happened 'ere?" one of the policemen asked aloud, totally surprised.

"I tihnk I have an idea," Constable McDonagh said sternly, looking straight at Eleanor. She raised her arm, grinning with her eyes closed.

"Me, me! I started it! I did it!" Eleanor cheered, then raised her other arm and clenched her fists.

The cops just stare.

"Ye'd be surprised, but dat girlie packs quite de punch. Saw her knock out twenty guys 'r so. She and her friends made de best barfight I've ever seen," the pub owner said.

All of a sudden, Eleanor's friends were being arrested, too drunk to resist, the boys getting a laugh out of it.

"Aw, come onn, I didn't even doo anytihn..." Cindy whined.

"Come along, miss, don't make dis any harder fer ya," Constable McDonagh instructed Eleanor, handcuffs dangling from his hand, but she just smiled at him.

"Ye know what? I got a better idea..." Eleanor stood while grabbing a whiskey bottle. She lifted the bottle and started chugging it.

The cops stared at her blankly, and Eleanor turned her head a little and smiled at them while whiskey poured down her face and chest. Once the bottle emptied, Eleanor threw it down, smashing it against the floor. The aroma of whiskey felt like it was fuming out Eleanor's eyes, her entire body on fire.

"Whoaa! _WWHHOOAA_!" Eleanor exclaimed, shoulders swaying. She looked at Constable McDonagh. " _PFFFFTH!_ " Whiskey spewed out Eleanor's lips and dashed onto McDonagh's face.

He didn't look happy.


	8. Chapter 8 - Easy

What exactly happened after she drank the entire bottle of whiskey? Eleanor had no idea, but she woke up in jail. She must have lost consciousness sometime after drinking all that whiskey in one go.

" _Uugghh..._ " Eleanor groaned as she sat up on her bed, head feeling like it weighed a tonne. She swung her long legs over the bed and nearly fell off. Elbows on her knees, shoulders swaying, Eleanor placed a hand on her forehead, wondering if she was going to puke. Her socks were not good at keeping her feet warm from the stone-cold floor.

"This sucks..." Eleanor mumbled.

Thinking of herself, Eleanor knew she had to get rid of her drunkenness. There seemed to be a correlation between alcohol and EVE, so Eleanor thought she could use it to absorb the alcohol in her body. Or so she expected something like that to happen. If consuming alcohol increased EVE, then expelling EVE could decrease alcohol, right? She began draining her EVE where her body had taken alcohol, as if to cast Plasmids without actually activating them, like dry firing Plasmids through her skin.

She did not know how long she sat in her cell, but Eleanor occasionally heard walking and talking, but like she cared. Whenever she lied back down, her head felt like it was throbbing and spinning in all directions, as well as her stomach. She wanted to sleep, but could not in this state. She moaned, pressing her face into the rather thin bed of her jail cell.

"I'll _never_...drink again," Eleanor mumbled into the mattress, but had a feeling she would not keep that promise.

Unable to sleep, Eleanor sat up again, head low, hands on her cheeks. She breathed slowly but deeply, finding some relief in her headache whenever she inhaled. She then smelled...cigarettes? She let her arms drop, and raised her head.

"And look what happened to you..." a familiar condescending voice remarked.

"Hmm? What?" Eleanor mumbled, rubbing her eyes, then yawning and stretching. A woman and a police officer stood at her cell.

Eleanor tried to stand up. Her head felt so heavy that she was unable to lift it. When she tried to stand, her head and shoulders remained very low, she lost balance, and walked into the wall, face sliding down it. Once Eleanor's face finished grinding against stone, she turned her head to see the woman.

"Oh, hi mom."

Mother just shook her head.

"When I heard that a British girl caused trouble and went to jail, I knew it was you. Just look at you, Eleanor. I am not surprised where you ended up. I am trying to not believe that my very own daughter is a criminal in jail. I did everything I could to prevent you from becoming like... _him_... Yet, I see so much of your fake father in you," Mother said in her usual hollow tone. She inhaled a mouthful of smoke.

"I regret _nothing,_ " Eleanor stated with a smile once she regained herself, then chuckled, still a little drunk from last night. "Except this hangover..." She sat back down. Mother's head dropped for a moment, placing one hand on her hip and one of her head.

" _Eleanor_..."

The police officer, who was McDonagh, was jotting down notes. Eleanor looked at him, noticing he had a black eye and looked haggard. She chuckled again. What did she do to the police officers? She did not remember.

"Your father really screwed you up in the head, didn't he?" Mother spat. Eleanor furrowed her eyebrows, actually feeling offended by Mother's question, but said nothing. "If only you listened to me, your dear mother, your only mother... But no, you _rejected_ your own mother. As would be expected on a tyrant..." Constable McDonagh turned to her and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"An' how could ye of tried ta drown yer own ma?" he asked, taking his hand off Sofia.

"She almost killed me by smothering me in my sleep, did she tell you that?" Eleanor asked sternly, though McDonagh did not believe her, but that question annoyed Mother.

"I am the one who ripped myself open giving birth to you, Eleanor!" Mother almost shouted.

"Like you had a choice," Eleanor remarked. Mother scowled. "Did you choose to have me? You _had_ to have me, didn't you? You should know by now your games won't work. Despite your education, Mother, you...and all the so-called _great minds_ of Rapture...never understood one very simple thing: free will. That's my choice. It always was."

"Ya don't have a choice. Ye sent over two dozen people ta hospital wiht serious injuries, and den ye attacked police officers. Yer stayin' behind bars fer a while," Constable McDonagh said, but he noticed Eleanor holding in a chuckle. "Dat's how kids act, but dis'll hit ya hard when ye realize yer situation."

"And I will have to live for the rest of my life knowing that my daughter... My only daughter... Is a criminal. A tyrant. No, she is not my daughter, she is a _monster,_ just like the dead man she admires. If only Sinclair could have been changed first..."

"Monster? Still a hypocrite, _woman_? But, Mother, you never told me who my biological father was, didn't you? Maybe you were the victim of rape? You do look like someone who would get raped. I'd rather be with a rapist than you," Eleanor acidly spoke, her unexpected rudeness catching Mother off-guard. McDonagh raised his eyebrows. Sofia Lamb turned around and walked away, Eleanor not seeing if she was hurt or angry, or both.

"Ye've got a real snotty attitude, and a worser mouth," McDonagh said. "I've never 'eard anyone talk like dat to d'ere ma. Ye really deserve ta be locked up fer good." He turned to see if Sofia was alright, but it seemed Mother was leaving the jail.

"If you think these bars will stop me..." Eleanor seemingly threatened, but McDonagh chuckled.

"A girl wiht a fantasy. I won't even waste me time talkin' ta ye, I gotta check on de lady who's family betrayed her."

"Oh, don't worry, I'll give you a headstart."

She remembered about something, then checked the pocket of her jacket. She pulled out Little Father, staring at the little thing. "I will not let your instincts go to waste..." she whispered, then put him back in her pocket.

Constable McDonagh walked down the hall, but he had an odd feeling. As he walked, he turned, noticing Eleanor following close behind. He inhaled and spun around, wondering how the girl escaped her cell. Though, there was no much time to think, for the constable felt himself lift off the floor and turn upside down, hat falling off. He hovered just a few inches from the floor, dumbstruck and confused, arms and legs peddling the air. Eleanor stood before him, leaning forwards with her hands clasped behind her back.

"You know nothing of me, Mr. McDonagh," was all Eleanor said, with a snarky smile. Her Plasmids kicked in and slammed the constable against the wall, he only able to briefly shout before losing consciousness. His limp body thumped to the floor.

Eleanor slowly smiled, and heard footfall heading her direction. Another cop came to the scene, having heard the shout, and saw Constable McDonagh on the floor. He immediately grasped his baton, but only saw Eleanor. Surely, there was no way a girl could have overpowered a grown man?

"What de hell happened?" the cop asked, amazed.

"I'm afraid I hurt him," Eleanor honestly answered, the cop giving her a weird look.

"Wait, didn't we lock ya up last night? How did..."

Eleanor shrugged and just walked past him.

"Eh! Don't go anywhere!" the cop ordered, walking after Eleanor and grabbing her shoulder. Eleanor spun around and punched the cop across the head, he and his baton hitting the floor. He lied on his side, stunned physically and mentally. Did a teenage girl just drop him?

Eleanor stepped to the side without further ado. Purple lighting flashed around her, and she vanished with it.

* * *

Elsewhere, a receptionist sat at her desk at the lobby, taking phone calls and doing paperwork. She noticed Eleanor coming.

"...yeah, I got ta go too, hopefully dis lady is much nicer den de last one who stormed past me. Bye!" the receptionist spoke in the phone, then hung up. "Hello, how can I...help ye?" she asked, but did look a little suspicious, seeing as Eleanor's jacket was a bit ripped and she had socks but no shoes.

"Oh, hi! I'm lookin' for me brother, Cathal Mac Ruaidhrí. Papa says he left jail, right, eh?" Eleanor said with a voice lighter than normal, and with a west Irish accent.

"Hm? Oh, ya, yer pa drove him and 'is friends home earlier dis mornin' when dey were released frum jail. Hah-hah, kids bein' kids. But Cathal looked sad, was talkin' about a girl. But I never knew yer pa had a daughter! How's Caoimhe doin'?" the receptionist replied, slightly surprising Eleanor.

"Ohh, noh! Speakin' o' which, I left me oven on at home! Thanks, bye!" Eleanor chirped, then quickly walked out the police station, and looked around. "Hm, where did Mother go? No matter. I will have to find the orphanage called Nazareth House, now."

Meanwhile, the receptionist was left with an awkward look, then noticed several policemen appear from the hallway.

"Where de hell did she go? We dealin' wiht a ghost 'r what?" one of the policemen remarked.

"A young lady just left the police station," the receptionist said, standing up, and having an idea that this had something to do with the strange girl she just met.

Quickly making their way out the building, the policemen looked around, and saw Eleanor walking across the parking lot.

"Ey! Stop!"

Eleanor slowed down her pace and looked to the side. Seeing a police car nearby, she swung her arm, releasing a rather big fireball that struck the vehicle and exploded. The car burst into flames, the cops skidding to a halt and raising their arms to shield themselves from the heat. The cops had no idea what happened, and hesitated.

"What de hell! A terrorist frum Nort'ern Ireland?"

Some of the cops ran around the billowing smoke to catch Eleanor, but she was nowhere in sight. She left them with nothing but confusion, and a fire to put out!


	9. Chapter 9 - Getting back the Girls

The Nazareth House was a large, grey, beautiful building, operated by the Sisters of Nazareth. It was not only an orphanage, but also a place for the elderly and destitute children.

The tall, nerdy, oval-faced lady known as Brigid Tenenbaum took a taxi to reach the place, wearing simple white clothes under a brown skirt and jacket, and high heels. She had gray, rather short, unkempt hair, not an uncommon problem for highly intelligent people. Brigid was equipped with nothing but a suitcase and autism, neither of which helped her. Tenenbaum was speaking to Mother Flannigan in her office, the woman in charge of the institute. It did not go well.

"...dhose girls are _mine._ My efforts, my sins, created the first little ones. Only I can truly cure them. Please, Mother Flannigan, I must take them back to a London so I can cure them, and finally end such work I did so long ago." Tenenbaum explained, clearly a little angry and emotional, but at least her English improved a little. She spoke with a thick accent yet had a gentle voice, rolling the tongue and often pronouncing 'th' as 'd' and if the first syllable is 'oo' as 'v', and sometimes added 'a' even when the determiner should not belong in the sentence.

Mother Flannigan did not seem impressed by the Belarusian's honest history, and stayed quiet for a few seconds.

"So... when you were sixteen, you were captured by Nazis, turned out to be a scientific genius, and then you escaped to an underwater city to recreate people and create super-children? And that these super-children puke out scientific bile that allow you to modify genetics, even the double helix?" Mother Flannigan asked.

"Yes." Tenenbaum replied, nodding solemnly, not realizing Mother Flannigan's disbelief. "We augment the lining of girl's stomach with sea slug. When she eats and regurgitates, this yields ADAM. All these crazy ideas I've had since the war... I just know."

"And then you returned to that underwater city to save the next generation of super-children?" Mother Flannigan asked.

"Yes! And now they are here, saved by Eleanor and... Delta, who died. But all I care about now is to save them, to finally end my sins, my guilt, my shame, before Dr. Lamb does anything. I am so close to putting all of this behind me... They used to ask me, when they will go home? I will finally take them home." Tenenbaum said, looking at peace with such good thoughts.

"Do you seriously expect me to believe you?" Mother Flannigan asked, and Tenenbaum's face contorted into frustration.

"Please, let me see them! They will know who I am! I can stay here, you bring them to me. Tell them Mama Tenenbaum is here to see them, they will know me." Tenenbaum said. "Did you see news? A submersible appear in Sligo, with many children, a woman named Sofia Lamb, her daughter Eleanor Lamb, and a dead man, Johnny. It's all over the news. There can be no doubt what I said is true."

"You said you saved children before, where are they?"

"The first ones I save have no memory of me. Even if I had some, they can't remember me. But the Little Sisters here know me. Please, I am begging you, they must see me." Brigid pleaded, sinking in her chair.

"Just give me a minute." Mother Flannigan said, picking up a telephone.

Tenenbaum soon found herself being escorted out the building by a police officer. She carries her suitcase in front of her with both hands, elbows bent, head low, shoulders raised. The crone is trying to hold back her tears, but her eyes are obviously shiny. She wants to plead to the officer, but what can she say to convince anyone of her underwater adventures? Brigid's thinking comes to an end when the police officer slumps to the ground and goes limp. She turns around to see what happened, a little afraid.

"Hi, Tenenbaum." Eleanor greets. Brigid sighs.

"Good to see you again, Eleanor. But now, we will have trouble with the police."

"Not if we act fast! I can faintly sense the Little Sisters, let's go get them!" Eleanor exclaimed, then runs into the orphanage, Tenenbaum jogging behind, almost dropping her suitcase.

Following Eleanor, Tenenbaum soon appears in a large room full of small bunk beds. The Little Sisters are playing various games. Many of the Little Sisters look up, seeing Eleanor and Tenenbaum, and they immediately scamper to them. Most of the little ones are happy, but a few get a little emotional and cry.

"Mama Tenenbaum!" a Little Sister exclaims.

"Mama Tenenbaum, did you see the boys here? Boys!"

"Eleanor!" another exclaims.

"Eleanor? Is it really you? We missed you! Good morning, Eleanor!"

"Mother Goose is back! Yay! I thought we left you in Rapture."

"Is she here? Eleanor _and_ Tenenbaum! You, you, you're both back!"

"See? I told you! Big Sister never leaves us! Now we can play again!"

"Why am I even crying? Mama and Big Sister are okay." a weeping Little Sister mumbles.

"Please don't go away ever again, Eleanor, okay? I'll be extra quiet, too, you know!"

The Little Sisters chirp endlessly while bobbing their big heads, Eleanor and Tenenbaum smiling and patting them on their heads.

"Wait, a few are missing." Eleanor said, Tenenbaum looking at her.

"Are you sure?" Brigid asks.

"I will find them." Eleanor assures, then teleports away.

Eleanor reappears in a dark room somewhere.

"Eleanor! You're back! Yay!" a Little Sister exclaims, who lies strapped down against a bed.

"What the hell happened?" Eleanor asks, then steps to the bed, ripping the straps off. Once freed, the Little Sister sits up, feels her wrists, and hops off the bed with a huff.

"Bad boys stealed me! They also stealed Chantal, Adelaide, and Cindy!"

"Stay close to me, Camille. Let's go get them." Eleanor said.

"Right! It's payback time!" the Little Sister says, cracking her knuckles.

The two do a little wandering, and Eleanor soon finds a locked door.

"Hands off! Don't touch me!" a Little Sister squeaked, followed by a slap. "No! No, no, no, no! Stop!" she squeaks, followed by more slapping and thudding. Eleanor's heart nearly stops, and pumps painfully.

Eleanor kicks the door with such force, her leg breaks through, but the damn door remains closed. Grunting from irritation, Eleanor smashes her head through the door and forces herself through, splinters of wood flying everywhere.

Up ahead, one of the Little Sisters has her hands and feet tied together behind herself, and two demented teenaged boys were striking her with belts and kicking her. Since the Little Sister was saved from her slug, she no longer possessed the regeneration Little Sisters would normally have, and was covered with red marks. Upon Eleanor's introduction, the teenaged boys stopped what they were doing and turned around to see what happened. They see a scruffy teenaged girl in socks.

Camille hopped through the broken section, biting her lip and raising her fists, "We're back with Big Sister! And you'll be sorry!" she threatens.

Eleanor did not say anything, her face devoid of emotion. Just as the priest had said, the orphanage had a bad reputation, and Eleanor now knew why. She could only imagine what these two teenagers did their entire lives to the other orphans. They reminded her of Splicers: ugly, pathetic cowards who preyed on innocent children. She wondered how Father felt, as a Big Daddy killing much smaller, pathetic, disgusting little monsters.

"Foohk off, ya ugly runt! Or I'll hurt you!" one of the teenagers threatened.

"An' I'll tell Mother Flannigan, so foohk off!" the other remarked. Eleanor was not sure if the boys were trying to play tough, or hiding their fear, or if they were just plain dumb.

"No! You fuck off!" Camille replies, leaning forward with her hands on her hips.

"Justice is a contract. Once broken, it can never be mended. For what you did to my Little Sisters, and for what you did to the other children, you both give up the right to live." Eleanor said firmly.

Ignoring everything for now, Eleanor ran across the floor, the teenagers surprised by how fast she can move. She grabs one boy by the neck and lifts him off the floor, the other teenager screaming like a girl. Eleanor then slams his back against the floor with an audible crack. He instantly breathes rapidly, moaning with every exhale, writhing against the floor. Camille scurries to the boy as he squirms in agony, most certainly from a broken back.

"You're a _bad_ boy!" Camille yells, and starts kicking the writhing teenager, hurting him further.

"Hurt him, Camille! Hurt him!" the bonded Little Sister shouts.

"I am, Chantal, I am! No one hurts _my_ sister and gets away with it!" Camille shrieks, thudding her little fists and feet into the handicapped abuser.

After regaining his senses, looking back and forth at Eleanor and his injured friend, the teenager still standing runs away.

"Go on, have a head start!" Eleanor shouts, then catches up to the teenager within a second, tackling into his back and taking him to the floor. She grabs him by the hair with the strength of a vice grip, and pulls his head back, the lad's shoulders raising and his scalp ripping open. He squeals, blood and tears running down his face.

Long fingers firmly latched around the back of the boy's head, Eleanor repeatedly smashes his face into the floor, fucking up his nose, lips, eyebrows, and cheekbones, most of his teeth falling out. Eleanor lifts his head up to take a look at his face. She leans close enough so that she can breathe on his brutalized face.

"Your face reminds me of a Splicer's. Not sure who's worse, though." Eleanor remarks, the boy breathing lightly and rapidly, his face unrecognizable, just a mangled mush of torn skin, leaking blood, and swelling flesh. She lets go of his head, hearing his face splat in blood.

Eleanor grabs the teenager by his ear, twisting it until she hears the cartilage crack. The boy whimpers, and then she promptly rips his ear off. She leans to the side like a snake, and grabs his other ear.

"Do you want me to rip this off, too?" she asks. The teenager whimpers. "No? Alright." Eleanor remarks, standing up. She bends over and grabs the teenager's arm with both hands, and pressing her foot against his ribs, pulls on the arm. The boy writhes and kicks, his arm's ligaments and tendons audibly popping, and then snapping apart as Eleanor ripped his arm out its socket. While blood leaked out the stump, she tosses the arm away, the young man wheezing.

Eleanor turns around and runs to the bonded Little Sister, Camille still attacking the teenager. Eleanor frees the girl, who then joins her sister in beating the teenager's broken back.

"You don't get timeout! You get unzipping instead!" Chantal states, and the two sisters pummel the lad until he can't even move. The Little Sister sisters then jump up and down atop the teenager's back, stamping their feet.

While the two sisters are busy, Eleanor darts off to find the last two Little Sisters. Breaking the washroom door open, she finds the third Little Sister, alone in the dark.

"Eleanor? Is that you? It is you! You saved me from the monsters!" the Little Sister exclaimed, running to Eleanor and hugging her legs, and crying. Eleanor knelt, hugging the child back.

"Shhh... I'm here, we'll be okay. Calm down, Adelaide, let's go." Eleanor comforts, taking the Little Sister to the two others. Camille and Chantal had finished beating the teenager up, and ran to Adelaide, taking turns hugging her.

"Cindy... where are you?" Eleanor asked herself, then ran off to find her. Exiting the room, she occasionally runs past nuns and orphans, but does not care about them, even when they ask who she is or what she is doing.

Eleanor breaks into what appears to be a janitor's closet. Inside, she finds Cindy. Cindy's hands are tied behind her back, and then the bonds were placed over a hook, forcing her to hang by her hands. The unnatural position and stress in her shoulders are so much, the child cannot even make noise. She had cried herself empty, and looked up at Eleanor with a haunting grimace, filled with the pleading desire to be saved.

Holding back tears, Eleanor gently lifts Cindy off the hook, and places her on her feet. Cindy fumbles down, and groans, unable to move. Eleanor undoes the child's bonds, then gently picks her up and carries her down the hall. The nuns and orphans staring at Eleanor do nothing, but some screaming echoed deeper in the orphanage. Sounded like Eleanor's victims were discovered.

Meanwhile, Tenenbaum remains with the first group of Little Sisters, sitting on a bed and watching them play. When she notices Eleanor return with four Little Sisters, one in her arms, Brigid's mouth drops. Tenenbaum approaches Eleanor, her dress a little bloodied with new blood.

"What happened?" Tenenbaum asked, the other Little Sisters jogging to Eleanor to see what happened to Cindy. Tenenbaum covered her mouth at the sight of poor Cindy and Chantal.

"Let's just get out of this place." Eleanor replied with some heat, and they all left the large room together.

As the family from Rapture headed for the exit, someone followed them.

"What the hell are you doing?" Mother Flannigan demanded, so Brigid turned around and punched her in the face. Despite her nerdy look, Brigid was a tall, fit woman, and her strike knocked Mother Flannigan off her feet.

"Yay!" several Little Sisters cheered.

They left the orphanage without further ado.

Outside, Eleanor walks to a parked car with four seats. She uses her psychokinesis to unlock the car doors, something she should have considered before, but was too angry to think straight. She did chuckle at it, though.

A minute later, Mama Tenenbaum was driving the stolen car, most of the Little Sisters cramped like sardines in the back, but two also sat on Eleanor's lap. Cindy lay across Tenenbaum's lap, shaking a little, Tenenbaum sometime stroking the child's head. Everyone was mostly quiet, the little ones keeping an eye out for bad people, peeping out the windows once in a while.

"No bad boys, Mama Tenenbaum!" a Little Sister from a backseat updated.

"Oh! Police! Get your heads down!" Tenenbaum instructed, and all the Little Sisters did so. Up ahead, several police cars raced down the street, sirens wailing. Like other road users, Tenenbaum drove to the side and stopped, and held her breath. One by one, all the cops drove past her, and did not stop.

"Wee-ooo!" one of the Little Sisters mimicked.

"Shh! The cops will hear us!" another Little Sister warned, and the previous one covered her mouth.

"Oh yeah, right!" she whispered.

The road soon went back to normal, and Tenenbaum continued driving, most Little Sisters lifting their heads to take a look around.

"Safe and sound." a Little Sister commented.

"You do have a plan, right?" Eleanor asked.

"Yes, a friend is waiting for me at the airport." Tenenbaum replied.

Sometime later, Tenenbaum drove to the airport. She clumsily parked her car, accidentally hitting another, raising her shoulders at that.

" _Kabronk!_ " a Little Sister exclaimed. Fortunately, no one was around to get upset at Tenenbaum's little accident.

"Let's go, now." Eleanor said, Little Sisters getting out first. "Tenenbaum, let me carry Cindy." she said, so Tenenbaum passed Cindy to Eleanor. Everyone followed Tenenbaum down the airport.

Soon, the family was approached by a tall man with pronounced facial features, and was wondering why the teenaged girl was not wearing any footwear. Eleanor furrowed her eyebrows at the sight of him, and once he got close enough, she slightly reared her head.

"S-S... Sinclair? Is that you?" Eleanor asked, surprised.

"I take it that means he's dead?" the man replied, having an American accent. "There was only one dead man on his lifeboat, and it wasn't Augustus. I'm Julian Sinclair, Augustus was my brother." he continued.

"I'm sorry. Augustus didn't make it, but because of him, we did." Eleanor comforted, hoping she did not have to explain what exactly happened to Augustus. From one of Rapture's greatest minds to a Big Daddy who kept some of his memories, he had quite the tragic life.

"Well then, now it's my turn to help you with my own vehicle." Julian said, then everyone followed him towards a Douglas DC-6 over yonder.

"You're the pilot?" Eleanor asked.

"Yeah, I was a pilot during the war. DC-6's were once military aircraft, so I figured I might as well keep flyin' em. Even after twenty years, they still soar real good." Julian replied.

"We're going in the angel-boat?" a Little Sister asked.

"Ooo! It's a Big Angel!" Adelaide remarked.


	10. Chapter 10 - A Plane

Eleanor and the Little Sisters were looking out their windows as the plane took-off. Most of the little ones seemed excited, opening their mouths and in awe to be in the air. Some of the girls were afraid, covering their heads and cowering behind their windows. The ladies were the only passengers.

"Don't be scared, Amy!" a Little Sister said to one who cowered, Tenenbaum walking down the aisle to pat her on the head, another Little Sister doing likewise.

"Angels always fly! They don't fall!" another explained.

"Surprised the angel sings so... deep, though. She'll wake up everyone!" another mumbled to herself.

"Of course the angel sings deep! We're in her tummy!"

"Yeah, and we can see lights in her tummy!"

"But if I'm in her tummy, why can't I smell ADAM?"

"I guess she didn't get any ADAM."

"Well, yeah! A Big Angel doesn't need any ADAM, 'cause she comes from heaven!"

"A Big Angel? She kinda looks like a, uh, a caterpillar... with stiff wings..."

As the Little Sisters chirped amongst themselves, Eleanor silently sat, arms crossed, looking out her window. She was rather unhappy, sometimes looking at her dirty socks, though walking barefoot was something she was used to. Thinking about what she did in the orphanage, she felt like a dirty sock. She recalled fighting with Father: burning Splicers to death, stabbing them, and smashing them, while Father shot, drilled, and Plasmid others to death. Even Splicers were people, but those teenaged boys were not Splicers. Regardless, they deserved to die. They are the reason they reminded her of Splicers, they are the reason she killed them. She slowly inhaled, shoulders raising, then steadily exhaled, shoulders dropping. Or, maybe she should have forgiven them, as she forgave Mother?

Hearing something touch her seats, Eleanor turned her head, seeing a Little Sister crawl onto the seats. The girl knelt before Eleanor, looked up at the Big Sister, cocked her head, and smiled.

"Thank you for saving me, Eleanor!" the girl said, then she turned, got her bum down on the seat, and let her little legs dangling. Pushing her fingers through her hair, the child looked back at Eleanor, and smiled again. "I'm better now, too! See?" the Little Sister exclaimed, raising her arms and curling them, showing off invisible muscles. Eleanor could not help but smile back, but then looked away, moving her fingers through her hair.

"Eleanor? What's wrong?" the Little Sister asked, leaning at her and placing a hand on her shoulder. Eleanor sighed, then softly placed her hand on the child's, but could not look back into her eyes.

"I've been bad, Cindy." Eleanor admitted, surprising the Little Sister.

"No!" the Little Sister exclaims, giving Eleanor a little shake. "No! You're good, good! Your daddy beat Splicers, just like Mark!" Cindy assures, and Eleanor chuckled. If only she was still a kid, but then, something clicked in Eleanor's head.

"Wait... Mark? Who's that?" Eleanor asked, looking at Cindy. Cindy took her hand off Eleanor, and then Cindy placed her own hand under her chin, and thought hard.

"Hmm... Oh, I dunno. Hee hee!" Cindy replied, Eleanor chuckling and smiling at how cute the girl was acting. "Oh wait, now I remember! He was my daddy!" Cindy replied happily. "...that your daddy killed." The two girls' expressions suddenly dropped.

Eleanor's heart sank. Puppy dog eyes. That was all she could do, and then looked away. Her throat felt heavy. She might cry at any given second, and did not like the thought of crying before children. She bit her lower lip.

"Cindy, child, I... I'm so sorry." Eleanor softly said.

"Eleanor?" Cindy asked, Eleanor unable to look at the kid, but Cindy poked her shoulder and got her attention. "Remember the toy I gave you? I know it's really, really rude, but... can... can... can I... can I have it back? Please?"

After a second, Eleanor put her hand in her pocket, feeling Little Father silently sitting in there. She took him out, Cindy gasping and her eyes getting bigger and bigger as Eleanor past her the Big Daddy doll.

"Little Daddy! You're back!" Cindy exclaimed, tilting her head, and hugging her toy. Eleanor smiled.

"Mmmmf! I missed you. And I knew Eleanor would take good care of you! Heee!" she exclaimed, then looked back at Eleanor. "Oh, don't worry Eleanor, I'll share! I promise, really, Little Daddy has as many girls he wants."

Although Eleanor would never admit it, she felt a little rush of jealousy and regret, but how could she say no to Cindy? That doll was especially precious for both of them.

Cindy and Eleanor did run some parallels, which brought back bad memories of Eleanor seeing father shoot himself so many years ago. Yet, Cindy also saw her father get killed in front of her. Although this freed Mark from his forced servitude, it was still an unpleasant thought. If only she could have saved both their fathers...

"Eleanor..." Cindy whispered, patting the big girl on the shoulder. "Eleanor?" she whispered again, so Eleanor looked at Cindy. "I still remember her. She's still alive, you know?"

"Mother?" Eleanor asked, curious. How did Cindy remember her own parents?

"Shh!" Cindy hushed, as if afraid of the word Eleanor just ushered. "But no, no. Not... mommy. I remember... her. Like me, she likes making sandcastles. She's like you, a big sister. She's still alive, she didn't die." Cindy continued, Eleanor giving the child a weird look.

"What? You mean..."

"The Big Sister who taked me so long ago, who left notes for daddy for me... she's still alive. I just know." Cindy explained quietly.

"Don't worry, Cindy, I'll make sure she doesn't get you again." Eleanor assured.

"Oh, no, she won't try that. Rapture is gone, remember? She knows. I think she wants to see me, someday, and say sorry." Cindy said.

"Oh? Hunh... Maybe, I'll get to meet her, too, someday." Eleanor said, thinking about meeting another Big Sister and talking to her.

If this other Big Sister was not totally crazy, Eleanor figured it would be nice to speak with someone who was in Rapture for as long as she. It would also give Tenenbaum some solace to know that at least one Little Sister she could not save so long ago survived. In theory, a Big Sister could swim out of Rapture and reach land, eventually, but it was quite the swim.

Eleanor could hear Tenenbaum mumbling to the children as the Little Sisters ran and jumped around the plane, treating the seats and aisle like a playground. Eleanor smiled, it was so cute to see Tenenbaum being the mother for so many children, but even the best mother could not handle, like, two dozen kids at the same time.

"Eleanor?" Cindy asked, sliding off the seats.

"Yeah?"

"Will you play with us?" Cindy asked, waddling on the spot for a second and then cocking her head, grinning eagerly. Eleanor stared blankly, then she slowly made a serpentine visage. Suddenly, Eleanor leapt forth at Cindy, the child giggling aloud while trying to dodge Big Sister.

Eleanor grabbed Cindy by the ribs, the girl squealing, and gently put her to the floor, tickling her. Cindy closed her eyes, laughing, kicking, and writhing from the assault of tickles.

"Hih hih hih! No fair! I wasn't ready, Eleanor!" Cindy shouted, trying to squirm away, but could not escape Eleanor's tickles. "Save yourself, Little Daddy!" Cindy cried, throwing him onto an empty seat.

"Oh no! Not you too!" Tenenbaum exclaimed while chuckling, watching Eleanor tickling Cindy. "I can't handle a Big Baby!"

"Get her!" one of the other Little Sisters shouted.

When Eleanor looked down the aisle, a horde of Little Sisters was charging her. Her jaw dropped and her eyes widened as the horde of little girls avalanched upon her, taking her to the floor. Despite being so young, the Little Sisters were much stronger than they looked!

"Sounds like ya'll are having lots of fun!" Julian Sinclair's voice shouted from the cockpit.

"Oh, yes! They are!" Tenenbaum called back. She took her seat, putting her hands on her lap, and she just watched the Little Sisters buzzing upon Eleanor. They were all happy, smiling, and laughing, and that was all a mother could ever want for her children.


	11. Chapter 11 - Благословение

"So that was your answer." a deep, gurgly voice spoke.

"Hmm?" Eleanor asked, lifting her head; was she sleeping while sitting in the plane seat? Everything was black, and she saw no one. A little alarmed, Eleanor stood up. She obviously wasn't on the plane anymore.

Oddly enough, despite neverending blackness in all directions, shadows did not exist. Eleanor could see herself, even the plane seat, yet there was no darkness amidst the blackness. Such a contradictory realization caused Eleanor to raise an eyebrow. She noticed something with the corner of her eye, and turned her head. She saw a pool of blood that slightly glowed, slowly flowing towards her. Beyond the pool of blood, she heard a faintly echoing beating heart, soon accompanied by dripping and slow, heavy breathing.

"You again? I thought you were just a bad dream." Eleanor remarked, then crossed her arms and slightly leaned.

"Hmm..." the voice grumbled, and he started walking, footfall causing blood to spatter with every step, yet Eleanor could not see him. The pool of blood rippled, Spirry's breathing, beating heart, and dripping now much louder. Eleanor could gradually see some sort of immense frame resembling transparent faint blueness, having several glowing masses in some sort of bipedal shape. Looking at the strange entity rather hurt Eleanor's eyes, as the imagery slightly shifted side to side and was blurry when doing so. She also heard static and tuning, reminding her of a distorted radio signal.

The entity was obviously ghostly, yet its body dripped glowing blood wherever veins would be, and whenever the entity exhaled, blood leaked out the mouth. If this was Spirry, he was immense, at least nine feet tall. Eleanor had heard stories of ghosts in Rapture, which were the result of ADAM and memories that somehow manifested in the city, yet they seemed to have stopped long ago.

"You chose to give the baby back to her father." Spirry remarked.

"Did I?" Eleanor asked, unable to remember anything.

"You did. Now, the cycle will continue, at least for now. I do not have any commiserations, but I was hoping to do some unbreaking. No matter. The child you did not rescue... she will find a way, eventually." Spirry replied.

"Ah, yes, you were keeping things from me." Eleanor said. "Bringing me to this... place... what do you want from me, Mr. Spirry?"

"You are an educated lady, Ms. Lamb, so you'll have to figure this out on your own." Spirry replied.

"You really are just like Mother, always playing some damn game. But if you won't stop haunting me with whatever custom Plasmids you possess, I'll have to go along with it. If you think I have the power to... release you... from your ghostly form, I cannot. I've only heard rumours of ghosts in Rapture, but they ended long ago. I know nothing of them." Eleanor explained. She watched the ghostly figure slowly walk to the side.

"So it may surprise you that's not what I need." Spirry quickly replied. "Not at all. I can revert to a physical form in your world, as I had done when I saw you twice in Sligo. Both times, you almost saw me, first at the church, then again in Father Ó Gallachóir's home."

"What?" Eleanor almost demanded while letting her arms drop and clenching her fists, a little embarrassed and angry at the thought of this creep always being able to be near her.

"You see, I am not concerned about whatever I could want from you, nor is this a demand of you. We are done with the past. Now, it is about what I can learn from you. Your thoughts, your memories, your drives, your ambitions..." Spirry continued, coming to a stop, then he turned to look at Eleanor.

"So for you, I am a test, an experiment." Eleanor said.

"Consider it a blessing in disguise, as your mother would say. Don't you see? This is also a benefit for me. How you see me now... a ghost... this is something I learned from Rapture, through what is inside you." Spirry explained. This got Eleanor's immediate attention.

"Wait, let me think... did you just imply you are learning about ADAM?" Eleanor asked.

"Not only that, Ms. Lamb. ADAM is like a benign cancer, replacing cells to create new possibilities. I am like a benign cancer to ADAM. My body replaces ADAM cells, and create new possibilities. ADAM is a canvas of genetics, but ADAM is just one colour of my painting." Spirry answered.

"What? How? What kind of laboratory do you have?" Eleanor asked, rather amazed. If Spirry really was some sort of successor of ADAM's original abilities, then whatever power he had, was truly formidable.

"My mind and body is my laboratory. All my science is performed biologically." Spirry answered.

Eleanor furrowed her eyebrows, in deep thought. She placed a hand under her chin and pondered, looking down. If Spirry was himself some sort of bio-laboratory, then he had no need of papers, vials, instruments, tools, computers, or any technological devices whatsoever. Spirry was, undoubtedly, the apex scientist: a researcher and a laboratory combined in one body.

"And my mind... was perfected with ADAM when Mother kept me sedated... and you bonded with my mind before we first met..." Eleanor said to herself, then slowly looked back at Spirry, who just started walking towards her. The blurriness made him hard to see, and he was very quickly very close to Eleanor. "Spirry!" Eleanor almost shouted, taking a step forward and leaning into Spirry's ghostly form, looking up at him, not at all intimidated that he was nine feet tall. He stopped.

Now that the two stood so closely, Eleanor could almost feel the force of his heartbeat. Contrary to his ghostly form, Spirry's exhaled breath flowed around Eleanor's head, and she smelled traces of ADAM, but it had a strong scent of blood.

"That baby girl, what does she have to do with this?" Eleanor demanded.

"If only you had done what I told you, her entire life would have been different. I would have been able to bond with her, and learn of her potential. But no, you had to give her back to her stupid father, and this changed everything. I will now have to go back in time to find her, again! And I haven't the slightest clue how to start." Spirry replied, clearly a little irritated.

"Not even my own mother could control me, why did you bother trying? Well, you almost succeeded." Eleanor somewhat teased, feeling the pool of Spirry's blood reach her toes and begin to soak her socks.

"I thought I could, because I bonded with you, and because of how your mother raised you. I expected you to be a Utopian, and serve the common good without question. But even all of this is just a chemical reaction, and you are the one who gives it meaning by choice. I never would have guessed you were able to resist a bonding by choice. You must have somehow learned this upon freeing the Little Sisters." Spirry spoke.

"With the help of Father, I am free, Mr. Spirry, but you are not. You know nothing of me, and you don't even know yourself. You see the world through an idea you created. For you, everything is an experiment with a goal; nothing else exists in your mindset. And if you can't achieve your goals, you will ruin everything, and bring everyone down to your level of destruction. You've made the same mistakes as Ryan, Fontaine, and Mother." Eleanor stated.

Eleanor was actually glad Mother raised her with lectures of psychology and philosophy. This would help her in understanding Spirry, though she kept most of it in her head most of the time. Nevertheless, she made a stern face and leaned at Spirry some more, not taking her eyes off his ghostly visage.

"And just look at you. You are always hiding. You never had a father, did you? Oh well, I still want to know you, Mr. Spirry, as ruined as you are. Why not reveal yourself?" she demanded, but Spirry kept quiet, or perhaps hesitated. This irritated Eleanor. "You are petrified of rejection, failure, life and death. What else can you be but a useless, worthless monster? You are just like your father and mother, they are also useless monsters. Think about your father, and know that if only your father could have learned from mine... he would be a real father."

Spirry seemed to hold in a chuckle, more blood than usual briefly leaking out his mouth. He slowly cocked his head, and clasped his hands behind his back.

"No matter how many insults you think of, there is no name for what I am, Eleanor. But with your help, they will never see me coming." was all Spirry said. Eleanor did not know why, but what he said felt... familiar.

"Go ahead, have a head start, make it last. We both know how this ends," Eleanor commented.

"No, neither of us can know how this ends. There is a constancy, and then there are variables, Eleanor. I do not know if you are a constance or a variable, but I know that you are the Lamb. This is a blessing you have yet to realize." Spirry assured.

Before Eleanor could say anything else, she awoke, again. She was sitting in a plane seat, and felt someone tugging at her dress. She looked to see who it was.

"Eleanor! The plane already landed, we gotta go! Don't be a slowpoke, we can't wait for slowpokes!" Cindy said, one arm around Little Daddy.

Eleanor furrowed her eyebrows, and looked out the window. What happened? Did she have another powerful dream?

"Hunh... How did he..." Eleanor said to herself, then heard static and tuning sounds from within her head. This caused a headache, but it did not bother Eleanor, she was used to mental stress. She felt Cindy pulling on her dress again, so Eleanor looked at the girl.

"Eleanor, you're bleeding." Cindy said.

Eleanor touched her own nose, and noticed blood on her fingertips.


	12. Chapter 12 - London

After radioing the control tower, Sinclair landed his plane at Heathrow Airport, which had various runways arranged somewhat like the Star of David. He sat in the cockpit, alone, driving the plane to a gradual halt.

"Welcome back, Julian. Did you seriously fly that plane alone?" the air traffic controller asked.

"I could fly this by myself even blindfolded. Should have seen me in the _Memphis Belle_ during the war, I was the reason she flew over twenty successful missions without a single casualty. We shot down eight German aircraft, too." Sinclair replied, seeing various runway personnel scurrying about.

Once the plane was motionless, Sinclair got up and started to exit the cockpit.

"Ya'll sound awfully quiet back there!" he remarked as he left the cockpit, and saw that Eleanor and the Little Sisters lied in a mess of themselves, exhausted from their playing and most asleep in odd positions. Even Tenenbaum was sleeping in her seat, mouth open. "Hah, kids..." Sinclair mumbled, doing his best to step over the little ones without waking them.

Eventually, everyone found themselves in a classic red double-decker bus, everyone paid for my Sinclair. The Little Sisters were soon scurrying around in the upper deck to have a look at everything. Brigid sat quietly, watching over the kids as they ran around. The other passengers had mixed feelings, some finding adorable girls running around cute, others finding it annoying, and some didn't care. Eleanor got quite a few weird looks from people, as she did not wear shoes, but she did not seem to mind.

"Are they your kids?" an old Englishwoman asked as a few Little Sisters squealed and bounced.

"Hm? Oh, yes. Yes, they are." Tenenbaum replied, her accent giving the old lady a slightly sour look.

"What are you? A pad rat?" the old lady asked.

"Hm? What?" Brigid replied, not understanding British military slang. For the most part, she ignored most of what was spoken to her, replying with an occasional nod. Her main focus was occasionally looking at the little ones.

"Ha! They're so cute." a passenger remarked.

"They all look exactly the same." another said.

"Must be sisters."

"Must have had a very, very busy mama." a woman chuckled.

"Very healthy? As compared to what?"

"You mean the work, or the mother?"

"No, the experiment."

"The experiment?"

"Yes, the experiment."

"Ah."

"Hadn't expected it to get his far. At least the girl understands experimentation."

"Ah. She never was a girl who sought someone else's life to use as her own. She often knew how to use protocol."

"She is, after all, Utopian."

"An A for effort."

"And an A for result."

Eleanor found the passengers' comments both unusual and pleasing. In Rapture, people would be trying to kill the girls, but on the surface, there was just love and curiosity. She felt so glad to be out of that fever dream, but the interactions she had with Mr. Spirry troubled her. This odd bond she had with him was not something she could understand, yet at the same time, she felt safe.

"Eleanor! Look!" a Little Sister chirped, tugging on Eleanor's dress to get her attention and snapping her out of her thinking. Eleanor complied, spending time with the little ones in their sightseeing.

Most of the passengers found the girls cute and funny, and nothing bad happened. Eleanor noticed Sinclair, sitting while leaning against the window, sleeping, probably needing a little nap after the flight.

"Eleanor!" a Little Sister squeaked, jumping up and down repeatedly, getting her attention.

"Yes, Cindy?"

"How's your nosey? Is she alright?" the Little Sister asked. Eleanor smiled, shoulders lowering a bit by how cute and sincere Cindy was.

"Yes, Cindy, she's fine, she's alright." Eleanor replied, briefly rubbing her nose. "How about you? How are your arms?"

"I'm good!" Cindy nearly cheered, genuinely happy, which was all Eleanor would ever want. Cindy's smile soon faded, as did Eleanor's, the Big Sister looking away. "Eleanor? What's wrong?"

"Oh, nothing."

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, really, I am."

"Eleanor, Big Sister, you're... not happy? Hmmm..." Cindy asked, cocking her head, sensing that something was wrong, but couldn't figure out what. Eleanor patted Cindy on the head.

"Oh, don't worry about me, Cindy. I'm just... tired." Eleanor replied, taking her seat again. She stared out the window and crossed her arms, looking rather depressed, something she did not want the little ones to see. _I miss you..._

"Eleanor?" a few Little Sisters asked at the same time, Eleanor turning her head to look at them, the bus bouncing a little from bumps.

"Is Eleanor sad?" a Little Sister asked. Eleanor hesitated, moving a few fingers along her hair, and then she looked back at the girls.

"Eleanor needs to have a little break, that's all." Eleanor responded, and smiled, "But I'll be ready to play again very soon."

"Yay!"

Eventually, the double-decker bus reached a destination somewhere in Westminister that evening. This was a very busy, governmental area of London, the River Thames running past. Tenenbaum had to wake up Sinclair, then gathered the girls, and they all went off the bus together.

"Stay close, little ones, don't want to get lost in city." Tenenbaum said as the girls swarmed about happily, eager to look at the sun, the mailboxes, telephone booths, and anything else they could get their paws on.

"Hunh, the tall houses don't even need water." a Little Sister said to herself, looking up at the tall buildings in awe. Eleanor was also interested in the architecture, which reminded her of Rapture, yet was distinctly different in its own way.

"I guess the water went high up." another commented, looking up at the blue sky and thinking hard.

Eleanor caught up with Tenenbaum, while Sinclair was behind everyone and keeping an eye out, sometimes having to run after a Little Sister who wandered too far off.

"Tenenbaum?" Eleanor said, getting the old lady's attention. "So, where are we heading, now?"

"To friend's place. It is where we all start new life, especially for you, Eleanor." Tenenbaum replied.

"Especially for me?" Eleanor asked.

"You will see." Brigid assured eagerly, giving Eleanor a smile. It was rare to see Tenenbaum smile, and Eleanor felt pleased with that.

"Hunh... You really are quite resourceful, Brigid. I don't know how you do it."

"Sometimes, I just know." Tenenbaum commented.

Later, Tenenbaum led everyone to a rather large, pretty townhouse, a terraced building.

"Housies here is so squished." a Little Sister observed.

Tenenbaum knocked on the door, and soon, it was opened by a middle-aged African-American man.

"Good evening, Tenenbaum, how are you? Please, come on in, all of you." the black man greeted politely, then made a rather surprised face by how many Little Sisters were with her. Everyone entered the townhouse, the little ones immediately exploring.

"Hello, Mr. Porter, good to see you again." Tenenbaum said.

"Yeah! Good to see you, too, Papa Porter! Where have you been?" a Little Sister cheeped, Porter smiling at her. She must have been one of the Little Sisters Porter saved in Minerva's Den.

"I was very busy, sweetie. I'm so happy you made it back as well." Charles replied, then noticed Eleanor, as well as her absence of shoes. "Ah, and you must be... Eleanor? Pleased to meet you." He shook Eleanor's hand.

"Hello, Mr. Porter, I don't think we've ever met. And what's this about The Thinker? I used to take your computers and robots apart as a kid." Eleanor said.

"Did you now? Huh. Well, I would love it for you to be a student at the University of Westminister. Tenenbaum was talking about it all the time after she... saved me." Porter said. Eleanor made a rather surprised face, and looked at Tenenbaum.

"Just as The Thinker predicted, Eleanor was at Ireland. It even gave me the phone number to contact her."

"Really?" Porter asked, amazed. "The Thinker isn't even two percent complete, and it told you that already? That can't be possible, I... the ADAM inside it must have continued increasing its intelligence, or... an incomplete computer should not be able to make such an accurate prediction... I can only imagine what wonders The Thinker can do when we finish rebuilding it." he continued while thinking heavily, suddenly looking quite eager to get something done.

Sinclair, however, had little idea of what was going on, or perhaps did not care. He watched the Little Sisters scurrying around instead.

"You're rebuilding The Thinker? Where? How did you get the funds and people for that?" Eleanor asked, genuinely curious. Surely, it would be impossible for two people, after rising out of the ocean with nothing, to suddenly be working on a megaproject?

"After Tenenbaum cured me, we went to Westminister to show the government and the university my codes. They were so impressed by it, we made a deal." Porter explained, then looked excited. "Now, the University of Westminster is helping to rebuild The Thinker with government funds, stocks, and investments! The best scientists around the world will be coming to Westminster when The Thinker is complete, I just know it. Stephen Hawking, Richard Feynman, Fred Singer, Arthur C. Clarke, Gerard Kuiper, Frank Drake, Carl Sagan, and so many others... Turing wouldn't even believe it. And now, with Tenenbaum's knowledge of ADAM, and your expertise in electronics, I can only imagine what scientific advances we will be making!"

Eleanor paused for a second. It would certainly be nice to be in an educational institution, where her upbringing could be utilized properly. Porter was putting on his boots while Eleanor pondered to herself. Would she be living with Porter, Tenenbaum, her Sisters, and be going to university? If only Father could be here...

"Oh, Ms. Tenenbaum, do you mind if I take Eleanor to the university? I would very much love to show her the operational data interpreter network, and have a chat with The Thinker."

"Of course, Porter. This can give me time to arrange the rooms for deh little ones." Tenenbaum replied, smiling. Porter nodded, and took car keys from the wall.

"Need help moving things?" Sinclair asked Tenenbaum.

"Yes, Julian, I not finish with some furniture. I would very much appreciate your help." Brigid replied, then noticed that things were awfully quiet. "Girls? Where are you? Where you go?" she called, overhearing a few giggles further into the townhouse.

"Sounds like they wanna play hide and sneak." Sinclair remarked.

"You're on your own this time, Tenenbaum." Eleanor joked, the girls chuckling.

"Ha! Alright, Eleanor, I'll drive you to the university, show you around. We won't be able to get much done tonight, but it's a start."


	13. Chapter 13 - Thinking

Mr. Porter and Ms. Lamb were both rather quiet during the drive. Porter clearly was in heavy thought, trying to figure out how The Thinker managed to tell Tenenbaum of Eleanor's whereabouts, something an unfinished processor clearly should not be able to do.

"You know, you could have just asked her about your computer," Eleanor commented as Porter obeyed a policeman guiding the traffic.

"I know, but I prefer to delve right into the experiment, now. A thing like that... I... it's just that being able to do my know-how up on the surface drives me to keep working. It's hard not to be excited knowing I can make The Thinker better than before. Yes!" Porter said, almost as if speaking to himself. He adjusted his glasses, nearly driving over the lane by accident, a few other cars honking at him, but he did not care. "It will be able to run all of the United Kingdom-no, the entire world-on time and in proper order. With further research into The Thinker and ADAM, and many years ahead of us for so much information processing... I believe every problem in the world can be solved. New medicines, new food surpluses, new engineering, a cure for cancer... new sciences!"

Porter's words hit Eleanor's heart firmly, but in a good way. Here drove Charles Milton Porter, a man raised without ideology, who willingly became a Utopian, in his own way. Eleanor rejected such beliefs, but seeing Porter's eagerness for creating a self-thinking supercomputer to save the world made her think about herself. Was she wrong to reject Mother's ideas? Considering Porter's attitudes, Eleanor was rather surprised Sofia did not reference him in some way, or perhaps was influenced by him? Regardless, long ago, Porter had made it clear to Sofia that he was not interested in her half-baked mumbo-jumbo.

"I admire your... Utopian ideals," Eleanor admitted. Porter chuckled.

"Well... Nah, it's about science. We scientists don't do science to save the world, we do science because it's fun," Porter remarked, the two chuckling.

"And you save the world by having fun with science, anyways."

"Took the words right out of my mouth, friend."

"Ah, a self-thinking machine. That would be quite the experiment, I don't think we ever tried that, did we?" a third voice asked, that of a British-sounding man.

"Interesting, certainly does not sound familiar." a fourth voice said, a British-sounding woman.

"It would be quite the surprising experiment to work with."

"Surprising."

"Surprising that we can work with it?"

"Surprising that we didn't work with it."

Porter slammed on the brakes. The car behind him honked and steered around past, the driver cussing out his window and then screeching away.

Porter and Eleanor turned their heads, looking at the back seats. Sitting in the back seats were a man and a woman, both redheads, both wearing formal bright brown attire. Both sides stared blankly at one another.

"I wasn't expecting that," the mysterious woman remarked.

"Neither was I," the mysterious man agreed.

"What the hell..." Porter mumbled to himself, lost for words. "How did you get in my car?"

"I believe we will get along very well," the mysterious man said, ignoring Porter's question completely.

"Indeed, we shall. Or, if not, I shant try this ever again," the mysterious woman commented.

"Are you being cute?"

"No, just thinking of my own ultimatum."

"Ah."

"Hm."

Eleanor narrowed her eyes as she gazed at the mysterious man. He kept his rather blank but focused look.

"Didn't I kill you somewhere?" Eleanor asked, and the mysterious man looked at her.

"Dies."

"Died."

"Will die."

"Subjunctive?"

"Or indictive?"

"All a matter of perspective."

"Some people find this rather... disagreeable."

Neither Porter nor Eleanor knew how to react. A few more cars steered around Porter's unmoving vehicle, honking angrily. Once Porter got his head together, he got his car going again.

"So, uh... how are you?" Porter asked.

"I think the real question is, not how we are, but what we are," the mysterious woman said, ignoring the question.

"Have you an affinity for physics?" the mysterious man asked.

"I think our contraption, incorporated with your own, could create quite the experiment.

"One that we need."

"One that has never been done before, not even in any other realm. A constance."

"Are you being cute?"

"No, just something part of my ultimatum."

"Ah."

"Indeed."

"You said something about physics?" Eleanor asked.

"Ah, yes. I once convolute a quantum atom with waves of light," the mysterious woman replied, finally answering a question.

"I was measuring exactly the same atom," the mysterious man remarked.

"And so our contraptions can prevent atoms from falling, or open windows into other worlds, albeit with some cognitive dissonance."

"How else do you think we-"

"Found ourselves in your vehicle?"

"Well, that's... quite the science I've never heard about. I wonder what The Thinker would make of it?" Porter spoke.

"Precisely," the mysterious couple said at the same time for once.

* * *

Porter arrived at the University of Westminister, on Regent Street. The university had evidence of additional construction, certainly to accommodate the size of The Thinker. No construction work currently occurring.

Everyone got out Porter's car, and followed him towards the university, the mysterious couple looking around.

"Hunh, a university..." Eleanor commented, looking up at the institution with curious eyes.

"And a suitable one for my work. The university already had advanced courses in engineering, mechanics, electronics, and life science. I couldn't imagine a better place for my science!" Porter said, grinning. "Heh, Ryan told me that my dreams would succeed me, and my work would become my legacy. If only I could see the look on his face now."

"Success is the best revenge," Eleanor commented, wondering how Mother was doing. She also wondered what Cathal was up to.

"And it keeps getting better. Hundreds of students are doing their best to enter next semester to study The Thinker and ADAM. I kept telling Tenenbaum, that she should be a teacher in her... adamology. But the poor lady just isn't into it."

"I don't think she will ever get over her guilt and regret," Eleanor said.

"I know, but..." Porter took a breath, "we've all gotta come to terms with ourselves. It's the only way to move forward."

"Indeed. What's done is done," the mysterious woman said.

"Certainly. What's done, will be done," the mysterious man acknowledged.

"Eleanor?" Porter asked, leaning to Eleanor as they walked, "Do you know who they are?" he whispered. Eleanor looked at him and just shrugged.

"At least their not obsessed about why I'm not wearing shoes."

Porter led everyone into the university, having to unlock the entrance door. Inside was dark and empty. He then took them to the laboratory containing The Thinker, which was basically a labyrinth of unfinished engineering. Most of The Thinker was just stacked computer components, not much other than preparations for assembly.

Porter unlocked another door, and entered the chamber containing the mainframe. Surprisingly, the mysterious couple were already inside, examining papers, Porter's equations, instruments, computer parts, and whatever took their fancy.

The main console was obviously not operational, or at least did not appear so. It consisted of a large monitor without a screen, flanked by three smaller screenless monitors, behind the monitors a gigantic cylindrical computer tower. A pair of immense electrodes stood at either side of the device. Nothing was connected nor powered-up, and everything was actually open, revealing interior circuitry, wiring, cables, and other crazy things. It would take a long time to put everything together.

"Wait, what... how did you get in here?" Porter asked.

"This new technology-" the mysterious woman said, interrupted by her male counterpart.

"Is quite fascinating," he finished.

"Certainly interesting to work with."

"Such a shame that the contraption is not working."

Eleanor was as curious as the mysterious couple, her big blue eyes staring at the very many things in the chamber. It certainly reminded her of Rapture, sort of.

"Let me fix that for you..." Porter said, then walked towards the main console. He stood before it, clearing his throat and crossed his arms. "Good morning, Thinker, how are you?"

After a second of silence, the main console suddenly sparked to life. The electrodes produced electricity from nowhere, and the Operational Data Interpreter Network hummed with activity. Curiously enough, the monitors, although missing screens, somehow formed a static-sounding, distorted projection. The projection seemed to be a woman's face. The mysterious couple stared at the most interesting contraption.

"Roses?" Eleanor whispered to herself. Did she smell... roses?

"Good morning, Charlie." the computer spoke back with a rather feminine yet robotic voice.

"Charlie?" Porter asked with a chuckle. "Thinker, how are you tonight?"

"Acceptable, Porter, thank you. May I request to continue self-construction?" the machine asked.

"Only a little, Thinker, it's getting late. Wouldn't want to cause a stir."

"Thank you!" The Thinker exclaimed, then the humming intensified.

Eleanor's eyes widened as various computer parts and pieces moved on their own. The Thinker was... using Telekinesis, to build itself? The computer was literally using Plasmids. From bolts to cables, wires to modules, the endless puzzles gradually put themselves together.

The mysterious couple examined the occurrences.

"Didn't you say that only magicians can levitate?" the mysterious man asked.

"No, I didn't."

"Did, too!"

"Did not!"

"Did, too!"

"I simply said, 'magicians levitate' in regards to how my atom failed to fall!" the mysterious woman explained.

"But what about indefinite failure of falling?"

"And what about that?"

"Was it also part of a Vigor?"

"The delicious question is, why didn't we implement Vigors into our contraption?"

"Was that before or after Vigors?"

"Now you're being cute."

"No, I'm not."

"Yes, you are."

"Am not!"

"Are, too!"

Eleanor wanted to roll her eyes at the pair of idiots. Watching the computer build itself reminded her of when she was young, and how she used to take apart electronics and put them together. Porter did not seem to mind, though, looking at his machine as if it were a good friend.

"Keep it nice and easy, Thinker, or you'll run out of EVE, again," Porter cautioned, "I know you're eager to get into working condition, but Tenenbaum's cure for ADAM sickness might not apply to you, after all," he mildly joked.

"Acknowledged. Update: EVE levels replenish at greater frequency."

"Again? Hunh, I don't know how you do it. Speaking of which, Tenenbaum told me, that you told her, where to find Eleanor. How did you do it?" Porter asked. Eleanor was also interested in the question. She stood beside Porter while the mysterious couple studied the various things around them, occasionally fighting over instruments or papers.

"Hello, Eleanor," The Thinker greeted, Eleanor unsure of how to speak to a computer, and hesitated.

"Hello, Thinker," Eleanor said with a little wave. The projection nodded, causing Eleanor to make a little smile. _What a friendly computer._

"Thorough analyzation of Vita-Chambers, Plasmids, Gene Tonics, ADAM, and genetic information of all citizens, enabled me to compound and process Eleanor's capabilities. Once connection was established with Eleanor's mind, I could also analyze her surroundings. I then told Ms. Tenenbaum where to find her." The Thinker replied.

Porter and Eleanor were intrigued by what they heard. The mysterious couple, however, continued mumbling arguments and squabbles.

"Hunh. I think your computer bonded with me," Eleanor commented, that being her only explanation.

"Thinker, you're... you're, much, much more than just a computer, now," Porter said, not really knowing what else to say. He was lost as to what exactly The Thinker had become, as it clearly had far exceeded his imagination. Eleanor was also rather surprised by this revelation. It was as if ADAM had given the computer... life?

"Yes, Porter. I have also maintained connection to RODIN, but Mr. Alexander's systems are offline. Once scans complete, I will have total control of Rapture's remaining security. This can facilitate further evacuation of Rapture residents, and implementation of Tenenbaum's cure for ADAM sickness."

"You... want to save more people from Rapture?" Porter asked.

"Yes. I have analyzed Eleanor, and wish to become like her," The Thinker replied.

Another surprise for Eleanor and Porter.

"I learned much from Father," Eleanor butted in, not wanting to leave him out, then felt a rush of loneliness. _I wish you were here..._

"...indeed, a Lutece device incorporated with The Thinker would make a fantastic machine." the mysterious woman said to her friend, Eleanor looking at the two.

"This would help us be rid of that... rather bloody, grotesque constance."

"Indeed, brother. But you know the windows of probability. For that, we need the girl."

"We both know that cannot be possible."

"But we both know the grotesque creature after her can interfere with everything we've done."

"Ah, I see... Work with him, but only for a while."

"Just enough to get the girl. There are no rules he obeys."

"Strictly a pass-fail experiment."

"Like heads or tails."

"Indeed."

 _Are they talking about Mr. Spirry?_

"Porter?" The Thinker asked.

"Yes, Thinker?"

"May I request that Eleanor stay with me? I wish to be with her."

"Oh? Certainly, but only if Eleanor is alright with it. Eleanor?" Porter said.

"Ha. Well, The Thinker needs more than a university and Telekinesis to get fixed. It also needs me and my expertise." Eleanor almost bragged.

"Thank you, Eleanor," The Thinker said, then its humming became quiet, and all floating parts gently fell to the floor. The projection seemed to sigh and lower its head.

"Thinker? You alright?" Porter asked as if concerned for a sick family member.

"Yes, Porter, just... awaiting EVE replenishment," the computer replied.

"Take it easy, Thinker. There's only so much you can do when you're only three percent done," Porter comforted.

"I want to be... complete."

"You will be, soon," Eleanor spoke. "We have to give the world time to be ready for you, after all."

"Ready, for all of us."


	14. Chapter 14 - New Life, New Experiment

"...A man's dream succeeds him, and his work becomes his legacy..." Charles Milton Porter spoke into the microphone. He was on stage speaking to perhaps a few thousand people, mostly students, but also professors. He had performed a huge lecture about ADAM, The Thinker, computing, science, and a little philosophy, introducing the achievements of Rapture to the world. There were also cameras recording him.

Almost all students' attention were glued to Charles. A lecture about science, that was actually interesting? And being about advances that could revolutionize the world? It seemed Porter's efforts gave every student the opportunity to change the world. Of course, a portion of the audience was in utter disbelief, but it would only take a matter of time before the reality of ADAM would prove itself.

Eleanor sat with the students, dressed as a student herself, wearing the black uniform all girls did. She remained silent, enjoying listening to Porter. She even felt a little nostalgia thinking about Rapture, and could not help but smirk when Porter referenced Andrew Ryan's words.

"...those words were spoken by Andrew Ryan about me, before I became one of the metal daddies. Now, ironically, he's the one who is long gone," Porter continued, the audience chuckling, Porter holding back a grin. He then became a little sad. "Even though... I lost my wife to the Blitz, I didn't let it stop me. I did not let the racism of my country hold me down. I did not Splice white. Hell, I didn't even let over a decade of Rapture drown me. That's the power of perseverance with the scientific method. There are no limits that define us, there are always limits to break," he continued, the audience building a gradual applause. "My work will exceed Ryan's own dream and legacy. Science has no limits," he finished, the applause building, Eleanor also clapping.

"Ah, if only he had been part of the experiment with us since the beginning," the mysterious woman remarked, this couple not bothering to applause. "I wonder if it would have succeeded in something else... his contraption is quite advanced."

"It could have failed," the mysterious man butted in.

"Are you sure about that?"

"Yes, but it would be interesting."

"I do believe he could change things, or at least The Thinker could."

"And one undertakes an experiment knowing one could fail."

"But one doesn't go into an experiment knowing one will fail."

"But process information at the speed of thought, for an indefinite amount of time, then converge the capabilities of ADAM with the Lutece particle-"

"And the experiment could include working of multiple realities at the same time, or adjusting constances of certain realities. Multiple windows. Not just a single one-way tear... but a sphere, a network of revolving realities."

"But the fascinating question is, why couldn't we find further realities in relation to this one?"

"Because this one grew out from the others. It's a reality that developed into its own, with new possibilities, a universe that created new rules. Just because the girl uprooted the tree, does not mean the seeds are dead, nor does it mean there aren't other trees to begin with."

"Are you sure about that?"

"Yes, I am."

"Or did we stop the experiment, brother?"

"No, we didn't. Time is indeed more of an ocean than a river, but oceans have currents, whirlpools, and waterspouts."

"And cities."

"And if a city can be underwater, and can float, why not also be a current?"

"Was this part of your new ultimatum?"

"No, it wasn't. Or, was it _your_ new ultimatum?"

"No."

"No?"

"I think the problem with memories is affecting us now, brother."

"Unintended consequences?"

"Or a new experiment?"

The mysterious redhead couple continued their awkward banter, but no one seemed to really care. Occasionally, Eleanor looked at them, wondering how they managed to teleport here and there, but could only conclude they had access to Plasmids like hers, or some equivalent.

Porter continued his lecture. The audience found much interest in his stories of Rapture, especially when he became a Big Daddy. After the end of Porter's talk, massive line-ups formed for the question period. Porter would probably need all day and all night to finish answering every question! But he seemed excited to talk about everything with students, some of whom had to be gifted. But what could the future hold? Not even Eleanor knew.

 _Is the world ready for me?_

* * *

Eleanor's new life was one of constant activity, thinking, planning, and working. She worked with Charles Porter and Brigid Tenenbaum every day, even during weekends, gradually building up The Thinker and incorporating it with a Lutece device they also had to build. Apparently, the mysterious couple already had a Lutece device, but the hardware was incompatible with what Porter had. They had no choice but to create a better, newer version.

Turns out the mysterious man's name was Robert, and the mysterious woman, Rosalind. Eleanor found their backstory quite interesting, piecing their cryptic speech together, but it was usually impossible to have a normal conversation with the redheads. Their habit of disappearing and reappearing killed any hope of friendship.

Ms. Lamb's job consisted of writing articles for various science journals and magazines, of which she explored and explained ADAM, EVE, Plasmids, Tonics, the Lutece particle (a subject she found quite interesting), and sometimes other topics relating to Rapture. Everyone needed a source of income, after all.

To keep the Little Sisters busy at home, Porter let them play _Spitfire_ , a simple video game he invented in Rapture, which he recreated. The video game gave Tenenbaum a little extra spare time every now and then. Occasionally, the girls would get angry and scream at or hit the gaming system, and no one really knew why. Kids and their video games.

Eleanor's compounded intellect of many of Rapture's inhabitants, and her experience in electronics, meant she was the perfect engineer for The Thinker, whilst the Luteces modernized their own knowledge and expertise into making a superb Lutece device. Such beautiful minds worked together, even though the Luteces often rambled about nothing, which Porter sometimes referred to as pseudoscientific mumbo-jumbo.

Eleanor got along well with other students of the university. She did not reveal much about herself, and spent time helping students in their studies and befriending people. Eventually, some people came to believe that Eleanor was the adopted daughter of Porter and Tenenbaum, but Eleanor did not mind. Her past in Rapture could not stay hidden, however, and she became a popular topic of gossip.

The Little Sisters spent most of their time at Porter's townhouse. Whenever _Spitfire_ got boring, the girls would play and run around, making messes and spills. Eleanor, Tenenbaum and Julian sometimes took the girls to parks, candy stores, zoos, and whatever attraction was available. Despite the hassles of looking after kids, the Little Sisters sure gave everyone a break from their work.

Eleanor and Tenenbaum noticed that after the children's Little Sister conditioning naturally dissipated, they gradually changed, slightly reverting to what they used to be, before they became Little Sisters. The transformation was never absolute, but the Little Sisters clearly looked different from one another. Tenenbaum's cure for ADAM sickness, in all its forms, worked.

Tenenbaum spent much time seeking information of the girls' parents, but The Thinker and Eleanor always got the necessary data instead. Julian Sinclair would then fly the girls to their countries, and he, Eleanor and Tenenbaum returned the little ones to their homes, one by one. They used this as a means of vacation away from work, but Porter and the Luteces managed well enough.

Camille Dumas was reunited with her father Claude and mother Marie, in La Rochelle, France. The nightmare of her parents, and their babysitter Lisette Dubois, had finally ended. Although not her biological sister despite having the same last name, Chantal was Camille's best friend, and the French Dumas family adopted Chantal Dumas, a Belgian orphan who had nowhere else to return to. The family planned to visit St. Lutgardis Orphanage someday, where Chantal was kidnapped from, so that Chantal could have a proper farewell of her former home.

Amy George was reunited with her mother, Esther George, in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

Now, her night terror was truly over. Mary Elizabeth Sarsfield returned to her home in Felixstowe, Suffolk, England, with her father, Ward.

Melinda Jelenski finally came back to her parents, Marie and Johann, who lived in Wilmington, North Carolina.

Ulrike Moeller returned home in St. Cloud, France, reuniting with her parents Werner and Hannah.

Kidnapped from a beach bungalow in Puerto Rico, Jennifer Walker reunited with her parents, Janet and Harold, in Pensylvania.

Elena Rodriguez returned home to her family in a place referred to as _La Boca_ , in Spain.

Maura Clune's parents, Charlotte and Eamon, would not have to pay any ransom. She came back to her home, a traditional cottage in Liscannor, County Clare, Ireland.

Mark's sacrifices of everything, including his own life, had not gone to waste. At long last, Cindy Meltzer was saved. She was returned to her widowed mother Amanda Kay Meltzer, in New York City. After finishing hugging her teary-eyed mother, Cindy looked at Eleanor, the child clutching her Big Daddy doll.

"You take good care of him," Eleanor said, and Cindy hugged her doll tightly.

"Don't worry, Eleanor, I'll take really, really good care of him! For all of us!" Cindy assured. Eleanor nodded.

"You will. Goodbye, Cindy," Eleanor said. Cindy suddenly waddled to her, raising her arms. Eleanor knelt, and the two hugged tightly. After they finished, Cindy wiped her eyes, looking up at Eleanor.

"Bye-bye, Eleanor! Bye-bye, Mama Tenenbaum!" Cindy exclaimed, waving an arm. She returned to her mom, still waving back at her friends.

Eleanor was going to miss Cindy, even the Big Daddy doll.

All other Little Sisters were reunited with their families, which was no easy task. But it was all worth it in the end. Every time Tenenbaum saw the family reunions, she smiled from relief. At long last, Tenenbaum atoned for her sins, at least some of them. However, watching the little ones go, one by one, also felt like bits of her heart were being peeled away. At least Julian was always there to brighten up the place, he was quite proud of his flying.

Eleanor and Tenenbaum felt an uncanny loneliness flying back to London. They sure were going to miss those cute little girls, even though they were quite the handful of problems at times.

* * *

Eleanor's past still troubled her. Memories of wandering Rapture, watching Father shoot himself, growing up dreaming about him, finding him, guiding him, seeing him again, wearing the Big Sister suit, killing Splicers, escaping Rapture, wanting to drown mother, watching Father die, her first dream of Spirry, wandering the strange hallways and finding the baby girl, fighting off that random shark, sailing to Ireland, getting drunk with Cathal and his friends, the problems with the police, arguing with Mother, escaping the jail, finding Tenenbaum, brutalizing those two teenagers in the orphanage...

She regretted quite a lot of what she did, and spent many nights pondering to herself about her actions. Did she really have to kill all those Splicers with Father? Did she really have to kill those two Irish teenagers abusing the Little Sisters? Did Father have to die? What was Mother up to? What about Cathal? Eleanor did not even want to ask The Thinker what Mother was probably doing. However, she did consider talking to The Thinker about Spirry. However, at the same time, she wanted to leave many things of her past in the past.

One sunset, Eleanor reached home, kicking her shoes off lazily. She had eye bags and dark circles. Rubbing her eyes, she walked forth rather slowly and weakly. Porter remained at the university, and Julian was away somewhere.

Eleanor saw Tenenbaum sprawled on the sofa, sleeping. Lying on the coffee table was an empty wine bottle as well as a newspaper, opened to the page: **RAPTURE REVEALED!** MILITARY SENDS SUBMERSIBLES TO EVACUATE SURVIVORS OF UNDERWATER CITY

Ms. Lamb zombied up the stairs, nearly tripping once. She went to her bedroom, exhausted from the day's work. Her desk was overloaded with papers and books, but they would have to wait. She fell onto her bed, faceplanting the pillows, wishing she could just sink into the soft fluffiness and sleep forever.

"It's so quiet without the little ones," Eleanor's voice muffled against the pillows, then she turned around to lie on her back. She stretched and yawned like a cat. "I really miss them..." she remarked while finishing her yawn, letting her long arms drop onto the bed.

She wanted to have a nap, but could not. Sleep just was not working, so she sat up to take a look at all that work on her desk. She winced. So, instead, she sat at her other desk to play some _Spitfire,_ anything to get her mind off the thought of so much work mockingly waiting for her. It was not long until Eleanor lost at her game.

"Oh my fucking god..."

She shut the system off and flopped back to bed.

"I can build a supercomputer, but I still can't beat that stupid game..."

Eleanor shut her eyes, she just wanted to sleep. She imagined the ocean, in all its dark, blue glory. Thinking of the ocean only gave her nostalgia and sadness. The echoing thuds of Rapture, the dripping water, the humming of whales and machines, the shadows, the ramblings of Splicers, the laughing of the Circus of Values clown... Eleanor actually started to miss Rapture. As horrible as Rapture was, it was still her home. The memory of the Rapture lighthouse was one she wished she could forget.

Eleanor then heard a... screaming dolphin? Opening her eyes, she quickly sat up, looking through the window and noticing it was nighttime. She heard rain tapping against the window and roof. Was she dreaming? No, she had not fallen asleep.

"Spirry..." Eleanor whispered, expecting he made another one of his enigmatic, pointless revelations. She quickly stepped to the door, but hesitated. She slowly opened the door and looked down both ways of the hallway, but everything seemed normal.

Quietly stepping down the stairs, Eleanor scanned the bottom floor. Tenenbaum was still sleeping, probably having drunk herself to sleep from separation anxiety when the little ones returned to their previous lives, as well as from work. Only tapping rain made any sound.

Eleanor looked at the small window in the front door, seeing... red light? Eyebrows furrowed, Eleanor went to the door, the beaming red light casting a red tint on her. She hesitated again, hand stopping before the door. After taking a breath, she slowly opened the door, just enough so that she could see who stood at the entrance. Raising her head, Eleanor's mouth slightly dropped. She was staring at a Big Sister, a back-mounted cage the only thing missing about her. The light changed from red to yellow, and the two sisters stood idly, the one in the diving suit soaked from the rain, raindrops tapping against her helmet.

Outside, various passersby kept their distance from the two-meter tall, gangly individual, the attire alone more than enough to cause some nightmares. Even cars drove past quicker. The immense individual very slowly leaned forwards, towering over Eleanor, she feeling as though the yellow light was beaming through her soul.

"Uh... come on in?" Eleanor somewhat greeted, stepping aside to let her sister in. The Big Sister nodded, and then past Eleanor, big boots thudding.

The sister plodded her way to the living room, Tenenbaum waking up and blankly watching the ghastly figure approach her. After a second, Brigid sat up properly, rubbing her eyes. At first, she did not believe her eyes, but once Eleanor walked into view, she had to believe. Brigid and the Big Sister just stared at each other, the yellow light turning green.

"So... which one are you?" Brigid asked nervously, placing her hands on her lap.

The Big Sister tilted her head at the question. She then gracefully sat beside Tenenbaum, swinging her extremely long legs over mama's lap. The Big Sister then grabbed her helmet, and after a short struggle, wrenched it off, placing it on the sofa. She looked terrible, head low, as if about to cry.

The Big Sister had pale skin, puffy eye bags, dark circles, and massive eyes that glowed orange. Her eyes were shaped so that they appeared to slightly tilt downwards to the sides. Her eyes were so bloodshot, that the red veins visibly mapped across her glowing eyeballs. Very long, very messy black hair hung like a dirty curtain from her huge head, covering most of her face. She has rounded cheeks, plump lips, small nose, small chin, and a tall, enlarged forehead. She stroked her hair to the sides, revealing her deprived face.

Eleanor winced from the Big Sister's terrible face. The poor thing looked like she had not slept, ever, her babyfaced visage obviously young, but looking like the skin was going to fall off. She looked like a sick zombie.

Brigid can see some ADAM oozing out the corners of the Big Sister's mouth, it's sick and green, just as she remembered it. Her filthy hair and dirty attire makes everything even worse. Tenenbaum feels an urge to just push this gross thing off her lap, and scream, _Get away from me!_ Tenenbaum remembered who this sister once was.

This time, Tenenbaum's maternal instincts overcame disgust and hatred. But, the horrible, horrible memory crushed Brigid. Nevertheless, she kept eye contact with the unblinking, oversized child. The Big Sister bit her lower lip, and looked afraid, lowering her head and raising her shoulders a bit.

Tenenbaum kept a rather stolid face on, but that did not stop teardrops from trickling. She slowly smiled, feeling much guilt and shame slip off her shoulders. Did the child forgive her? The Big Sister tilted her head, and smiled back, as painful as it was to smile, but she did it anyways, for mother. Mama gave the grown-up Little Sister a big hug, and they silently wept over each other's shoulders.


	15. Chapter 15 - Unforeseen Consequence

Eleanor wasn't sure what to do. She just stood there, beholding the scene as rain tapped against the roof and windows, making everything feel sadder. Tenenbaum and the Big Sister hugging reminded Eleanor of Father, or at least something she wished she could have experienced. Eleanor slowly looked down, slightly sighing. It would have been very nice to see Father's face, and embrace him for what he was...

The Big Sister sniffled, then gradually pulled away from mama. Tenenbaum remained silent, wiping her eyes. Turning her torso, but not getting off mama's lap, the Big Sister took a letter from the inside of her helmet. She then raised it to Eleanor, who retrieved it. Tenenbaum covered her face and wept, so the Big Sister comforted mama, putting an arm around her shoulders. Figuring Tenenbaum and the Big Sister should be alone, Eleanor took her leave, going to her bedroom upstairs.

Eleanor sat on her bed and examined the letter. It looked old, yellowish from dampness, was rather crumpled, and even had mould growing here and there. The front read:

 _To: Lamb_

Eleanor furrowed her eyebrows, but opened the letter anyways. Curiously enough, the text was written in shiny red. It was uncommon for someone to write a letter in red. The letter read:

 _It's me. You have noticed this because of my handwriting._ _Lamb, you can't hide her from me. No matter what you choose, we will meet again, eventually. If this is something that can be stopped, then try to stop it. You will know where to find me. Find me before I find you._

 _P.S. Don't pick number 77 when you get here. Do not alert Benny Chairman of your presence._ _  
_

 _\- Michael Vay Atar_

"Hunh... what an odd way to write a letter, Mr. Atar," Eleanor remarked with a raised eyebrow. She certainly never met such a person. She did not know if the letter was meant for her, or for her mother. Whoever this "her" the letter referred to, was either herself, or someone else. She looked at the back of the letter to see its address:

 _460 Madison Ave, New York City, NY 10022-6863_

Eleanor sure did not know what place this address referred to, let alone how a letter written in New York ended up in the hands of a Big Sister, then given to her. This was quite the mystery. However, it sure would be nice to go back to New York. Last time, when she flew to New York City with Brigid and Sinclair to return Cindy to her mother, Eleanor did not stumble upon any friends. Cathal did mention going to New York, after all. It would be nice to see him and Cindy again, no matter how unlikely the odds were.

Eleanor sighed.

"Cathal... I miss you. I hope you're at New York, and somewhere I can find you," Eleanor said to herself. She did not realize how lonely she was until now. She truly missed Cathal, even though he was a fucking dick when they first met. She smiled at the thought of giving him a bleeding nose, reminded her of what she did to Amir as a little kid.

 _Go to New York._ a voice said to Eleanor, her own. Was she talking to herself? Or was her mind talking to her? She did not know why, but something in her thoughts was driving her to go to New York City.

"Hm... maybe The Thinker will know how to find him?" Eleanor asked herself, then looked up, seeing two familiar faces standing in her bedroom. Each held a small red pillow in one's hands, each pillow holding a ring box.

"Serpent?"

"Or the lighthouse?"

"Or perhaps the serpent?"

"Nothing beats the lighthouse."

"What the hell are you two doing in my room?" Eleanor asked, standing up, clearly annoyed. The Luteces stared at her attentively, tilting their heads a bit here and there, as if facially gesturing her to make a pick. Each box had a pretty pendant.

Eleanor quickly realized the gifts for her. Robert's ring box had a pendant depicting a gaping serpent, reminding Eleanor of a certain statue of Father the Little Sister saw long ago, when the child was controlled by Father to fetch the suit.

Rosalind's box contained a pendant depicting a lighthouse. Undoubtedly, it was the Rapture Lighthouse. It did have a somber feel. The lighthouse... The lighthouse was the main reason for all of this happening, wasn't it?

The Luteces' little things were quite amazing, expertly crafted for sure. Eleanor wondered which one Father would pick. She would never know which one he would like more, though. However, Eleanor was not pleased about the twins' little game. She just stared at them, slightly irritated.

"What do you think I am? Five?" Eleanor grumbled.

"I think she'll pick the lighthouse," Rosalind said.

"And I say the serpent," Robert assured.

Eleanor would never admit it, but she was rather excited about receiving a gift. She caused the little ones to leave gifts for Father, and she never accepted Mother's gift. Receiving a gift made her feel like a little girl again, and she made a little grin, eyes darting side to side from the little things.

"Actually... Hunh. Platinum is what they are made of, aren't they? More expensive than solid gold, more expensive than Little Sisters..." Eleanor chirped, her demeanor suddenly changing. She leaned over a bit, forearms raised, wondering which medallion to pick. She made her choice, picking up the one on her right and putting it around her neck. Robert bowed while Eleanor looked at herself in the mirror.

"I love it! I think Father would, too. Makes me feel like a conqueror," Eleanor said.

"But basically everyone picked the bird... I was expecting this animal, too," Robert almost whined, head low.

"A sore loser? Just as I predicted. Knew I shouldn't have had done this again," Rosalind spoke, raising her palm against Robert's chin to lift it up. "Chin up, again."

"But I thought you'd be the sore loser, again?" Robert replied, the two starting their walk out Eleanor's room.

"I suppose you may consider that the serpent did not catch the bird this time."

"But, the lighthouse does lead to a cage."

"Well, there's always the chance for next time."

"Indeed. I wonder which of our two other choices Mr. Va'Ahtar will choose?" Robert asked, and then the twins mumbled as they walked down the hallway.

Eleanor took another good look at herself in the mirror. She did not know why, but she really liked the lighthouse pendant. She tilted her head, extended a foot, and swayed her shoulders a bit. The platinum thing made her feel special, yet it also gave her unhappy memories.

"My trophy for surviving Rapture... Hah-hah..." Eleanor chirped, but them she looked somber. "But also... a memory of Father's last moment. This is for you."

Eleanor wondered how Father's body was doing in Ireland. Her one regret was never being able to see Father without his helmet again. Yet, she left him on Sinclair's lifeboat, and simply moved on. She never wanted to see Father dead ever again.

Eleanor would not leave the UK without saying goodbye to her friends first. Sinclair would continue his job as a pilot and move on with his life, and the next morning, she phoned her workplace and informed them she was leaving for New York. She did not bother explaining, and hung up the phone early. She put all her money, identification, and passport into her wallet and was ready to go.

Eleanor headed to the university, proudly wearing her epic platinum amulet. Walking along the sidewalks, she saw the bustling streets of London, full of people walking or driving to work.

Reaching the school, Eleanor went to the library, and found her school buddies sitting at a table. She noticed half the library staring at her. Various people whispered about her arrival, as well as about rumours of her life. A few of the most common words were about her height, her huge eyes, she being born in Rapture, and being a cute super genius. A few guys commented about her cuteness, legs, and even lack of boobs, but, Eleanor never cared about guy-talk. She sat with her friends.

"Hi, Eleanor, how are you today?" Nwando Nwodo asked, a young woman from Nigeria, a diligent student. She was short, had a slim waist, and was curvy. Her African accent made her R's sound long.

"And what's that around your neck?" Lucas asked, a funny guy who was always curious about everything. Eleanor felt good to have something noticeable.

"Good, Nwando! Lucas, this is my new trinket. Got it from the Luteces. But in other news, I'm leaving for New York City," Eleanor replied.

"Really?" her friends all asked at the same time.

"What? You're going to New York?" Emily, a British student, had to ask again, lifting her head out her homework and looking surprised. Eleanor nodded to her friends. "You never said anything about this, Ellie, it's kinda uncalled for!"

"Don't get yourself killed, Eleanor. New York is a dangerous place, gang violence! Irish, Italians, Polacks... Pretty nasty people in a nasty city," Alex exclaimed, a British guy. His bias against the Irish irked Eleanor. As for Italians and Poles, well, she didn't see many of them in Rapture.

"Oh, believe me, I'm used to gang wars, Alex. I'm not afraid," Eleanor assured.

"But you can't go! The term isn't even done yet! We still have three terms to go," Nwando warned, but Eleanor clearly was not bothered.

"Not to mention, The Thinker isn't even done, either," Emily butted in rather childishly. Emily sure was a girl who overreacted at times.

"Eh, let's just say this is my getaway from another fever dream," Eleanor said.

"Do you feel... like you don't fit in?" Lucas asked.

"Of course. I grew up in an underwater city, what did you expect?" Eleanor replied in good humour.

"Is it really true, then?" Lucas asked, Eleanor nodded.

"Been reading the news? They've sent submersibles to try and evacuate Rapture, or what's left of it. I'm surprised there's any Rapture left, honestly. I just can't handle the memories anymore, I want to be as far away from it as possible. I hope you understand, and I hope you will forgive me for getting away," Eleanor explained sweetly.

"Will you be back, Eleanor? You're the golden girl here, everyone's always talking about you. Heard some crazy things about you, and crazier rumours." Emily spoke warily. Eleanor made a little smile.

"Yes, Emily, I will be back. Porter and Tenenbaum can continue work without me, I... I just want to go. My Father gave me the greatest gift of all, my freedom. I just can't stand being cooped up in school. I want to enjoy life with the money I saved from my job." Eleanor explained, and her friends seemed to understand.

"It's your life, Ellie. Just be careful, okay?" Emily cautioned.

"I'll be fine, Emily, I'll be fine. I need to do this. I'll be going to see Charles, Brigid and Thinker, then I'm leaving. See you all later," Eleanor said, then took her leave.

Going down the hallway, Eleanor felt someone bump her in the shoulder. She had barely budged from the impact. Eleanor stopped and turned. A young adult woman had bumped into her, a tall, pretty, blue-eyed blondie with rather big boobs, who had grimaced and was rubbing her shoulder. With her were several other young women, her friends.

"Oh, I'm sorry, didn't see you," Eleanor said, but in truth she did see the girl and was pretty sure she kept her distance.

"Oh, I'm sorry, didn't see you," the blondie repeated, noticing Eleanor's pendant. "That's the prettiest thing I've ever saw! It looks good on you!" the blondie complimented, slightly bending her knees for a moment, tilting her head, and making a plastic smile. Her friends also smiled.

"Thanks. It's quite the gift, isn't it?" Eleanor responded, the blondie nodded, and Eleanor continued her walk.

"That's the dumbest thing I've ever seen. Seriously, wearing a medallion? In the twentieth century? Who does Eleanor think she is? The Queen of England?" the blondie grumbled as her friends closed in around her.

Eleanor heard that, but minded her own business.

"You don't like her?" a passerby asked, another young woman.

"She has sex with her mom, did you know that?" the blondie asked, tilting her head back a bit and making a plastic grin. Her friends chuckled.

"Ew," the passerby exclaimed.

"I know," the blondie assured, looking proud. The group of girls walked off together with a new friend, talking about how much Eleanor sucked.

Eleanor did not feel offended, but was surprised by how stupid some people were.

"Just like Porter said... too bad you can't splice common sense," Eleanor said to herself.

Next, Eleanor headed to the warehouse containing The Thinker, which was currently offline. There was still so much more work to do, and Eleanor almost felt distraught at the thought of it. Sure enough, Porter was working like crazy even during lunchtime, but Eleanor was surprised to see the Big Sister here. However, the Luteces were not here, the unfinished sections of the Lutece device clearly needing more work.

The Big Sister was not wearing her helmet, and sat on a chair while Tenenbaum tried to use various medical instruments and ADAM on the big girl to begin treating her condition. However, the Big Sister, like a big baby, sucked in her lips, reared, and turned her head. The Big Sister made a wheezing dolphin cry, clearly expressing her displeasure. Eleanor found it very creepy to see someone making dolphin noises. Brigid huffed, placing her hands on her hips.

"Child! You must take medicine, or we cannot help you!" Brigid fussed, but the Big Sister clearly wouldn't make this easy, not even for mama.

"Having a good time being mommy?" Eleanor asked, walking to the scene.

"You know... at least the little ones were, well, little," Tenenbaum admitted. "It won't be easy curing this big one of her ADAM sickness. You! Sit!" Tenenbaum continued, trying to give the big girl an injection to begin the procedure.

The Big Sister leaned to the side, forearms raised to her chest and elbows low, and she just laughed aloud, laughing like a dolphin. The inhuman laughter startled Tenenbaum, causing her to drop her injector. She sighed.

"At least she made it out of Rapture," Eleanor remarked.

"Yes... and to save one life is to save many. If I can save just one more girl from deh old Rapture... zhen that would be wonderful. Oh, and Eleanor, you are still going to leave, yes?"

"Yes, Tenenbaum, going to New York is what I will do. It's... private," Eleanor relied, Brigid nodded. Good thing she wasn't nosy. Eleanor noticed Tenenbaum's suitcase, and furrowed her eyebrows. "I thought you forgot your suitcase in Ireland?"

"It was already here this morning. I think Ms. Big Girl brought it for me. Such a cute girl, aren't you?" Tenenbaum said, giving the Big Sister's head a rubdown, the big baby slightly sticking her tongue out from pleasure.

"But first..." Eleanor said, and walked towards The Thinker. Porter was so busy working in his computer he did not even notice Eleanor until she leaned by his shoulder.

"Oh! Yes, Eleanor? How do you do?" Charles asked, adjusting his glasses.

"Very well, thank you. Mr. Porter, may I use The Thinker? I'm leaving for New York, I would like to see if The Think can help me find someone or two," Eleanor asked.

"Of course, Eleanor, it's the least I could do considering all the help you've done," Charles said, then cleared his throat. "Good morning, Thinker, how are you?" he asked, and The Thinker whirred to life, even the Lutece device shocking to some activity. The holograph of a woman's face appeared on the monitor as well.

"Acceptable. Requesting conversation with Eleanor Lamb?" The Thinker spoke.

"Sounds like it was already expecting you," Porter remarked.

"Hunh, I suppose so. Thinker, suppose I were to fly to New York. Where could I be most likely to find my friend Cathal?" Eleanor asked. The Thinker buzzed with thought.

"Cathal Mac Ruaidhrí... sailed to New York City, arrived on early October. Has some family members living in Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan, likely his next destination," The Thinker replied.

"Oh, so he did go to New York. Thinker, what about Mo- nevermind. Thinker, do you happen to know anything about... Spirry?" Eleanor asked, Porter giving her a somewhat odd look.

"Spirry? Who's that?" Porter asked.

"This... individual... seems to be the result of a cross-over of genetic sampling from recycled ADAM, creating memories. Unknown cause. No Rapture resident has these memories. Unknown source of memories. Memories may be false, or created," The Thinker replied.

"So, you don't know everything after all..." Tenenbaum mumbled from the background. "Grownup Little Sister! I said sit! Please, child..." Dolphin laughs.

"Interesting. Since I think you bonded with me, we might be able to connect. Focus on my thoughts, my memories, my drives... Let me see if I can help you solve this little mystery," Eleanor said, closing her eyes and thinking hard. Since she and The Thinker were empowered by ADAM, perhaps there was a way to converge the two entities?

Eleanor attempted to siphon her thoughts and memories of Spirry into The Thinker. The Thinker's Plasmids kicked in, the supercomputer lighting up and groaning with activity. Eleanor felt the power rush through her body, spine tingling, skin crawling, hair waving from electric waves. Porter, Tenenbaum and even the Big Sister paused, gazing at The Thinker.

"Thinker... let's try to figure out what Spirry is, now," Eleanor said, and that was when her Plasmids kicked in. Both conjured streams of electricity that connected between them. Telekinesis gently waved, Porter having to hold down his glasses and coffee mug.

Eleanor felt herself rise off the floor, and she calmly levitated before The Thinker, marginally spreading her arms. It felt very nice to float like this, but Eleanor focused hard. She heard static resonating within her skull, and all the veins under her skin and in her eyes beamed yellow.

The Thinker's holographic image of a woman's face began glowing yellow, and surprisingly, the holograph actually floated out its monitor. Porter and Tenenbaum were surprised, whereas the Big Sister was spinning on her seat like a small girl.

"Eleanor? What's... going on?" Porter asked. Eleanor turned her head, eyes now beaming yellow.

"I'm alright, Mr. Porter. Let me focus, please..." Eleanor replied. Porter nodded and began jotting down notes.

The holograph flashed with static bursts every few seconds or so. The Thinker's holograph seemed to be floating in front of Eleanor, and then stepped inside of her. Eleanor was covered with a holographic aura. The static amplified, the noise hurting Porter's ears, enough to cause him to step back.

"Eleanor!" Porter called, but Eleanor did not reply.

"Porter! What's going on? can you turn it off?" Tenenbaum asked, clearly nervous. Several blasts of electricity shot from The Thinker, causing many sparks to fly about.

"Thinker! Thinker, Eleanor, can you hear me?" Porter called, but there was no reply. Porter was becoming nervous. He stepped to Eleanor and touched her, and immediately felt a shock, causing him to jump.

"Thinker! If you can hear me, shut off! Now!" Porter shouted, then began rummaging through the hardware to manually shut everything down. However, the electricity and violent static was too much, forcing Porter to step away from the machinery.

Meanwhile, about twenty people came, a mix of students and technicians returning from lunch break. When they saw what was going on, they instantly stopped. They murmured about what was going on.

Then, the static of The Thinker and Eleanor became so bright, Porter, Tenenbaum, the Big Sister, the students, and technicians were blinded. When the light faded, Eleanor slowly descended, tips of her shoes touching the floor, then she landed gracefully. Her holographic aura flowed out of her, and rearranged back into the monitor. A strange image formed within the monitor, looking like a rippling opening with a bright purple outline, disrupting the appearance of the holograph.

"Eleanor! What did you do?" Tenenbaum asked, she and Porter amazed. Eleanor's eyes and veins were still glowing with yellowish static, but she seemed to hear them.

"Well, exactly as I said... I connected my mind with The Thinker's... essence. We can expand ADAM into greater Plasmids. I believe The Thinker can now understand me. It can now form something called a... Lutece tear? Must be what Rosalind and Robert were talking about," Eleanor replied.

"Eleanor, child, are you..." Tenenbaum said.

"Yes, Tenenbaum, I'm fine," Eleanor assured, but the static fields in her made her look creepy.

"Thinker... are you alright?" Porter asked, The Thinker's holograph looking at him.

"Acceptable. New information and data processing... installed," The Thinker responded.

"Thinker... let's try again. I must know who and what he is," Eleanor implored, crossing her arms. The Thinker looked at her, and seemed to think hard.

"Unknown... processing... analyzing... Spirry seems to have a genetic code similar to... the sea slugs. Connection established with RODIN, analyzing further data... scanning ruins of Rapture... The individual you refer to as Spirry... processing... Spirry's genetics include an overlap of Gilbert Alexander... and the man known as Atlas and Frank Fontaine prior to being killed by Jack and the Little Sisters."

The revelation surprised Eleanor, and Tenenbaum's attention was immediately fixated upon the mention of Atlas.

"So... I was partly right about him..." Eleanor said to herself. "Yet, Spirry is a convergence of the mutations that transformed Dr. Alexander and Atlas. Hunh. He must have somehow acquired Atlas' corpse." Eleanor took a good look at the Lutece tear within the monitor. She had a feeling someone was staring back at her.

"Acceptable," The Thinker remarked, "however, a majority of his genetics are unlike anything that has been analyzed. About eighty percent of Spirry's genes are of unknown data."

"Thank you, Thinker. Hmm, where do you think I can find him?"

"Analyzing... Analyzing failed. Unknown parameters."

"I will meet you at the address of the letter, but only if you bring the girl. It's your choice, Eleanor, it always was," a deep, gargled voice sounded from the Lutece tear, which made Eleanor's heart almost skip a beat. A loudly beating heart reverberated through the Lutece tear, every heartbeat causing blood to squirt out the tear.

She gazed at the Lutece tear which was, apparently, leaking blood. Someone was staring at her through the Lutece tear. Whoever it was, seemed fleshy and skinless.

"Gilbert Alexander? Is that you?" Eleanor asked, wondering if that mutated foetal doctor was actually just calling himself Spirry this entire time.

Leaning forwards and squinting her eyes, Eleanor saw something odd. She beheld a face unlike any that she had ever seen. The face was skinless, fleshy, and had a... muzzle? The skinless head of an animal? Before she could see anything else, the Lutece tear closed, leaving behind streaks of blood along various machinery and computers. The Thinker suddenly shutdown. Eleanor returned to normal as well, but her nose was bleeding.

Several students and technicians exclaimed hushes of fear and worry. The Big Sister sneezed, falling off her chair like an idiot, Tenenbaum looking at her.

"Uh... Eleanor, I think that's enough crazy experiments for today," Porter commented.

"Agreed," Eleanor replied, "but when I get back, we'll continue our work." She was totally convinced her next destination had to be New York, the only way to finally solve all this bullshit once and for all. Eleanor spun on her heels and left the warehouse, stepping through the dumbstruck technicians and students.

Leaving the university was harder than Eleanor expected. A crowd formed and went after her, dying to meet her. All the fanboys and fangirls wanted to kill Eleanor with questions about what just happened. Eleanor sure did not like being a superstar, and was glad she was leaving it all behind. Unfortunately, the crowd became too big, and Eleanor could not exit the university. Various teachers tried to sustain the crowd, but to little avail.

"Ugh... annoying people..." Eleanor groaned. Knowing she could not go forth, she had no choice but to be creative. A flash of purple rippled through the air, about a dozen students screaming from fright. Eleanor was gone.

Eleanor reappeared in the girl's washroom, which was empty. She sighed with relief; at least no one saw her appear. She left the washroom and headed for the exit, overhearing the echoes of the crowd. As she walked, Eleanor felt someone grab her shoulder from behind, so spun around. It was that blonde bitch and her friends.

"What?" Eleanor demanded, obviously annoyed.

"Looks like the Cult of Eleanor following their cult leader, that's what," the blonde girl replied.

"She's just like her mom, apparently. Can't trust her," one of the other girls remarked.

"What's her cult called? Cunt of Eleanor, and she's the cunt leader!" another girl remarked, the girls laughing at Eleanor.

"I bet she fucks teachers in their office, too. The golden girl will do anything for attention and good grades," the blonde bitch said.

"She fucks her dad, too," another girl commented.

"If you want to be offensive, you have to be taken seriously, first," Eleanor remarked. Most of the girls just artificially laugh at her.

"What's that? You suck your mom's dick?" the blonde bitch asked. The girls chuckle again. "You know what? When I graduate, I'll have _both_ of my parents watching me. I have good parents. Did you?"

"You know nothing of me," Eleanor stated.

"I know that you don't even have any tits," the blonde bitch assured, suddenly pushing Eleanor on her breasts, staggering her, and also made her uncomfortable and step back. "You've got tits like a stick. This little bitch doesn't even have an ass."

Eleanor was irritated by those comments. She still needed a year or two to grow curves. Obviously, Eleanor would not get out of this easily. She could have simply teleported, but that was too easy. Instead, she leaned into the blonde bitch's face, Eleanor using her forehead to push the blondie back a bit.

"How about you get the fuck out of my face before I ram your own head right up your fucking ass?" Eleanor threatened, then stepped through her and another girl, neither able to stop her.

The blondie then quickly stepped in front of Eleanor and spat in her eye. Eleanor reared back, covering her eye, definitely not expecting that. The girls laughed, a few slapping Eleanor across the head or pulling on her hair. None of the attacks hurt her that much, but Ms. Lamb did not actually want to seriously hurt anyone.

The blonde bitch then grabbed and pulled on Eleanor's breasts and kneed her in the crotch, which did hurt even for a girl. Eleanor blushed. In retaliation, she slapped the blonde bitch across the face, and with such force that blood and snot smeared across the bitch's face. She lied on her side, face red and swelling, shaking, breathing rapidly, and tears trickling down her eyes. Eleanor's hand was basically imprinted on her cheek, the searing pain writhing against the blonde bitch's skin.

Then, most of the other girls jumped Eleanor, kicking, punching and pulling on her hair. Eleanor did not need to use Plasmids. She grabbed one of the girls by the forehead, lifted her with one hand, then threw her down to the floor. Eleanor grabbed one girl by the arm and flipped her down. Grabbing another by the leg, she threw a girl against the wall, but not hard.

The girls quickly realized they were dealing with someone who clearly was not normal, perhaps not even human. They got scared, stepped back, and walked away quickly. Eleanor did not notice, but a small crowd had gathered to observe the fight, and everyone kept their distance. Ms. Lamb stepped on the blonde bitch's as she went over her, and took her leave.

"What does it take to just be left alone?" Eleanor asked herself.


	16. Chapter 16 - New York

_Ding._

"Need a ticket to New York, now," Eleanor said after ringing the bell. She had already handed her documentation to the man, but he sure was inefficient. Though, it was early in the morning.

"Yeah, just a minute, friend," the guy behind the desk replied, quietly talking on the phone to someone as if he did not care about the girl.

"I'm not in a hurry, sir, but I would like to get going."

"Yeah, yeah, but... you're just sixteen years old..."

"So?"

"Well, are you with any parents?"

"No."

"I can't sell you a ticket if-"

"Give me my ticket, dammit!" Eleanor shouted, slamming her fist on the desk and casting a petty electrobolt at the same time. The Plasmid frightened the clerk, dropping his telephone, leaning away, and seeing small masses of electricity zapping about. Whoever was on the phone, continued talking, then asked if Henry was still there.

Despite being baby-faced, Eleanor had quite the evil look when angry. She was softly glaring, some hair hanging down her forehead, head tilted forwards a bit... Not even her cute black student uniform and little black shoes helped. She just continued glaring at the man.

Sitting in a plane wasn't fun, and flying over the Atlantic didn't help, either. At least she had her seat for herself. Unlike most people, Eleanor kept her suitcase by her feet. Most passengers were middle to upper class, well-dressed and quiet, some sleeping. The whirring plane engines and inactivity of everyone meant that Eleanor had a lot of quiet time to herself, and she felt rather peaceful.

She thought about Rapture. Yet again, she felt... homesick? Lonely? Nostalgic? Or was it something else? She sighed, but just wanted to get her mind off that fever dream. She crossed her arms, leaned against the window, and tried to get some sleep.

It didn't work. Eleanor occasionally moved a bit, trying other positions, but everything was uncomfortable and restless. Eleanor sighed again, then realized the place was dark, the lights on the ceiling flickering sometimes, and the plane shaking now and then.

then looked to the side, seeing a woman weakly walking up the aisle. She was a beautiful woman with a chiselled face, but with a stature quite small for an adult. She had large blue eyes, narrow eyebrows, and fluffy black hair. She wore a white shirt ripped open below the right shoulder and at the end of the sleeve, and a black miniskirt. Blood leaked down the woman's forehead, mostly on the left side. Some blood had landed on her shirt. She looked beat-up and depressed.

Eleanor stood up, wondering what was going on. She looked up the aisle, and saw the backside of a man wearing a woollen shirt, and holding a revolver, aiming it at an unlucky woman. The man slightly turned his head, a few papers flying around amidst the panic.

Immediately, Eleanor stood up, wondering why everything seemed so... slow? She had to do something, otherwise the petite lady would get herself killed, approaching the terrorist without even being quick or sneaky. So, Eleanor pushed the woman onto some seats, and approached the gunman.

The gunman turned around, just enough to see Eleanor. Her vision became blackness, accompanied by an odd whirring, windy noise. Ms. Lamb felt the plane plummeting, engines screaming, and then the plane crashed into the Atlantic, water flowing.

Eleanor looked up, eyes still open. She looked down, seeing her suitcase by her legs. She looked down the aisle, then up the aisle. No mysterious woman or gunman. The plane shook a little from wind turbulence.

Ms. Lamb sighed, slouching in her seat and trying to make herself comfortable.

"Hunh... First, Spirry starts haunting me. Now, it's Jack. And I thought Rapture was crazy."

* * *

Many hours later, the Statue of Liberty came into sight, proudly standing in-between New York and New Jersey. Later, Eleanor reached New York City, landing at the John F. Kennedy International Airport that evening. She could see the sea, and the vastness of America really showed. The airport was huge!

After lots of walking, then exchanging her British pounds into US dollars, Eleanor was ready to seek out the address. At long last, she would be able to find out what Spirry wanted. Thinking about that skinless, animalistic face she saw through the Lutece tear did not frighten her, and if Spirry thought he could intimidate her... Well, he'd be in for a surprise.

Catching a cab wasn't easy. There were lots of taxis, yet lots of people, too. Eleanor also saw a seventh generation, grey, Chrysler New Yorker, which for some reason slowed down as it drove past her. In fact, it slowed down so much, Eleanor thought it would stop next to her. Oddly enough, the driver just stared forwards, as did the passenger. The car then drove off as if nothing happened.

Eventually, Eleanor signalled a Checker Taxi, the driver only too happy to help a young, tall, cute lady in black.

"Hey there! Where to?" the cab driver asked, a man with a very American accent, reminding her of the Sinclair brothers. "Need help with luggage?" he asked, Eleanor shook her head, and stepped in.

"I'm new in town, so I might make myself look rather awkward, but..." Eleanor replied.

"Nah, not at all! Don't worry 'bout it! We New Yorkers are friendly to foreigners. You from England?"

"I... guess you could say that."

"No, really, where ya from?"

"Rapture."

"Where's that?"

"At the bottom of the Atlantic ocean," Eleanor answered. The driver chuckled.

"Welcome to America! So, where to, lil' lady?"

"This place," Eleanor said, handing the driver a note with an address written on.

"Fifth avenue, 10022... Gotta drive across Queens, Brooklyn and East River into Manhattan. Shouldn't take more than about an hour. Goin' to church? It ain't Sunday, y'know. Or, are ya sightseeing?" the driver asked.

"I'm here to meet a friend. He wants me to meet him at this address."

"Oh? What's his name, if you don't mind me askin'."

"Michael Vay Atar. What an odd name, hunh?" Eleanor replied, feeling the cab go into gear and get driving.

"Sure is an odd last name. I have heard of that guy, actually, over on the radio, couple days ago," the driver said, surprising Eleanor. "I had a feeling you were gonna say that name. People even from Europe have been coming to New York to see him, or so folks be sayin'."

"Oh? I... did not know that."

"I think he's some sort of preacher or somethin'. He's got a cult going on, I think. But it ain't none of my business. If you're meeting him at St. Patrick's Cathedral, guessin' he's a Catholic," he replied. "I hope I ain't bein' too nosy, but what exactly as goin' on with him?" he asked, Eleanor shrugged.

"I'm here to find out. But also to visit friends," Eleanor answered, and the driver nodded.

"Speaking of names and friends, the name's Jasper. What's yours?"

"Eleanor."

"Pretty name, fits you perfectly."

"Thanks."

"You've got a pretty necklace, too," Jasper complimented. Eleanor figured he meant her medallion.

"Thanks, it's very close to me."

Eleanor found it peculiar that Americans drove on the right side of the road. She did talk about it for a while, and Jasper commented that he would never be able to drive in England.

The driving turned out to be longer than Eleanor expected, and heavy traffic made everything feel so sluggish. Eleanor felt nervous at how much slower things turned out to be. She sure was going to pay a lot for this taxi! On the bright side, the driver was friendly, and spoke of various things of New York and its people.

Up ahead, Eleanor could see a giant bridge going across a big river and a narrow island.

"That be Queensboro Bridge and Roosevelt Island. For lots of folks, New York is nothin' but skyscrapers. But we have rivers, beaches, lakes, islands, parks, forests... there's somethin' for everyone here!" Jasper explained. "Ain't it a beautiful bridge?" He sure loved his city.

"Yes, it sure is... we never had anything like this in Rapture," Eleanor replied. The bridge was very, very big and tall, taller than almost all buildings in sight.

"And just you wait! I bet, one day, New York will even have its own city in the sky!" the driver eagerly said as he drove into Manhattan. "We're in Manhattan, home of the Empire State Building! We'll reach the cathedral pretty soon. Oh, and if you be planning to stick around, stay away from the east side of Manhattan, especially Hell's Kitchen. It's an Irish ghetto, people get beaten n' stabbed all the time. No place for a young lady like you."

 _Hell's Kitchen? Cathal..._

After more driving and blabbing, The Cathedral of St. Patrick came into view down over yonder. Eleanor sighed with relief. The cathedral truly stood out from all the modern skyscrapers around it. It reminded her of the churches in Sligo, yet the styles were different.

"Almost there," Jasper said.

Soon, across the street from the cathedral, Eleanor saw the Rockefeller Centre, and the Atlas statue in front of it. She slightly furrowed her eyebrows. She remembered seeing the Atlas statue in her dream after escaping Rapture. Eleanor was not sure if this was why Frank Fontaine took the alias Atlas or not. Well, there Atlas stood, the world on his shoulders, whereas Father had the ocean over his shoulders. What was next?

The driver suddenly hit the brakes, Eleanor placing her hands on the dashboard as the cab screeched to a halt. A gray, seventh generation Chrysler New Yorker had steered in front of the taxi, stopping sideways across the road. A man in a gray suit and gray hat exited the Chrysler, jogging towards the cab while raising his hand for attention.

"Watch where you're drivin'!" the cab driver angrily yelled out the window as he opened it.

Eleanor felt something strange. She heard static and tuning noises reverberating in her skull. Her brain felt like it was being slowly electrocuted, so she turned her head away and put her forehead against the window, and rubbed her head to try and dull the pain. The frequency intensified. Eleanor felt her nose bleeding, and her headache became so intense she dug her fingernails into her scalp.

"Hey? What's wrong, Eleanor?" Jasper asked.

Eleanor slowly started turning her head while keeping it low, some black hair hanging over her face. Both her eyes beamed bright yellow, and her jaw hung loosely, some light beginning to beam out her mouth as well.

"Oh God!" the driver shouted from fright, leaning away while taking his seatbelt off, wanting to just get out of the car. His window suddenly cracked with a bang, a hole in it, blood spattered over the cracked glass. Jasper fell over Eleanor's lap, a red hole in the left side of his head leaking blood.

Eleanor did not react much, though a number of passersby gasped or screamed, then ran away. Ironically, despite the intense pain, Eleanor felt braindead. She simply watched as the man in the grey suit walk around the car and open the right door.

"Finally got payback, Jasper. And look who else is here..." the man in grey remarked. "Quick! Get her out before she gets shot!" he suddenly shouted, holstering his pistol underneath his jacket. He unbuckled Eleanor's seatbelt and got her out of the car. Eleanor wanted to do something, but everything felt slow, just like when she met Spirry the first time in her dream. As the man pulled her out the car, she looked at the taxi's ID atop the roof: IN77.

"Someone call the police and ambulance!" he yelled again, some onlookers confused, the entire block soon in panic.

Eleanor felt the man press a damp cloth to her mouth, the damp side sprinkled with white powder. Unsurprisingly, she inhaled the powdery substance, which she figured was fentanyl mixed with carfentanyl. Not even Eleanor could withstand carfentanyl. She quickly lost consciousness. Had a normal human being inhaled the substance, death would have assuredly occurred.

The man carried Eleanor to the grey car, opening a backdoor and tossing her in. As sirens echoed, the grey car drove off.

* * *

What seemed to have been a simple taxi drive has taken a turn... for the worst.

Nighttime, Fort Lee Historic Park. Someone flicked a lighter open, and lit his cigarette. Eleanor smelled the smoke as it drifted past her head. Eleanor opened her eyes. She seemed to be kneeling, but her vision was dark and blurry. She heard a river, rustling trees, traffic, and the sounds of late night city life. Her vision somewhat cleared, and she realized her hands were bound.

 _What's going on?_

"...you got what you were after, so pay up!" the voice of an African-American demanded.

"You're crying in the rain, pally," someone nearby replied.

Eleanor attempted to free herself, trying to rip her hands free of the bonds, twisting her hands around, but nothing worked.

 _Just teleport..._ Eleanor thought to herself, and that was when the extreme headache, bleeding noise, and eyes beaming yellow returned. The men nearby obviously noticed the yellow lights beaming out Eleanor's eyes.

"Hhheh... Guess who's waking up over here?" a third man asked.

Eleanor steadily looked up, and saw three men standing in front of her. The man in the middle stood mostly sideways, wearing a checkered suit of black, white, and grey. He wore a white shirt under his jacket, a black tie, and bright baize pants. He was a brown-eyed brunette, and looked very American, handsomely American.

To her left, stood an impatient, muscular, African-American man with a big moustache, wearing black leather attire and a white headband. To her right, stood a white guy, also wearing black leather attire, and having a spiky Mohawk and trimmed beard. He acted like an idiot chicken, frequently turning his head side to side. There were several other men in the area, all wearing black leather attire.

The man in the checkered suit lifted his cigarette to have a puff, then tossed his cig away, crushing it underfoot while exhaling a mouthful of smoke.

"Time to cash out," the man in the checkered suit said, taking a few steps to Eleanor, looking at her like some predatory animal. Eleanor wanted to speak, to throw a Plasmid, to get up, to _do_ something! But she could not, feeling disabled.

"Would you get it over with?" the African-American demanded, spreading his arms from impatience. The man in the checkered suit raised a finger at the African-American, but did not turn around.

"Maybe cons kill people without lookin' 'em in the face," Checkered-suit replied while staring into Eleanor's eyes, then slightly turning his head and raising his eyebrows. "But I ain't a fink. Dig?"

The African-American man looked angry, turning his head side to side and wondering if he should knock the guy out, clenching his fists, but did nothing.

Checkered-suit turned his attention to Eleanor, taking out something from the inside of his jacket. He now held Eleanor's medallion, looking at it, the pretty thing glowing with yellow static. Raising the medallion up so that Eleanor could see it, Checkered-suit then looked at Eleanor, his head slightly tilted.

"You've made your last delivery, kid," Checkered-suit said, putting Eleanor's medallion back in his suit, then feeling for something else. "Sorry you got twisted up in this scene," he continued, Eleanor watching as he pulled out a beautifully crafted, silvery, engraved, 9mm handgun.

The African-American scratched his head and looked off to the side.

"From where you're kneeling might seem like an 18-carat run of bad luck," Checkered-suit commented, slowly raising his handgun, extending his arm, and pointing it at Eleanor. His two buddies looked pleased. "Truth is... the game was rigged from the start." Gunshot with muzzle flash.

Blackness.


	17. Chapter 17 - Blood?

A young blonde girl knelt at a small rocky beach of Liberty Island during morning, examining various rocks. Behind her was a short seawall, and up in the sky, seagulls cried. The young girl wore a yellow dress, which matched her hair colour. She looked up at the sun, and smiled, a little wind picking up, causing her hair and dress to sway. Taking her little shoes off, she stepped into the water, cold waves splashing against her little body. She merrily walked deeper into the water.

Water, water, everywhere... Dreaming? Floating?

Can't breathe. Can't see. Salt? I taste... salt.

Eleanor felt pain everywhere, the salty water only making it worse.

Good. That means I'm alive. I guess...

She opened one eye, feeling her face scraping against hard, jagged, pointy things. The rocks jabbed at her body as she dragged along them, poking at her bones. Oddly enough, she was flowing over the rocks, and still could not breathe. Was she... underwater? She struggled to stay awake, and frequently blacked out.

Eventually, Eleanor heard waves and seagulls. Now, she lied on her back, the warm sun beaming down on her. Eleanor's skin was wrinkly, bruised, and swollen. She figured she was thrown into the river after being shot, then floated out to sea, but drifted back. She felt someone touch her sternum, and her vision partly cleared but she could not open her right eye. Her right eye hurt like hell.

Looking around with her left eye, the first thing Eleanor saw was... a doll of a Big Daddy wiggling over her face?

A young blonde girl, soaking wet, knelt over Eleanor. The child smiled when she noticed Eleanor's eye move to look at her. Eleanor weakly coughed, water leaking out her mouth and nose. Although it was a painful struggle, Eleanor took her first, albeit weak, breath. The tinge of salt stung her tongue. How long was she saturated in sea water?

"I knew he would wake you up!" the girl squeaked. "Good boy!" she exclaimed, patting the doll on the head the hugging him, "We saved Eleanor!"

The girl then looked back at her big sister, lowering so that their foreheads almost touched, Eleanor feeling the girl's hair tickle her face and drip water. The child stroked Eleanor's forehead.

"You're back, Eleanor. I missed you," the child whispered, looking sad at first, but then she cocked her head and made a big smile. Gradually, Eleanor softly smiled back as memories came flooding back.

"Yes... I'm back. I missed you, too, Cindy... and Little Daddy," Eleanor whispered weakly.

The blonde girl giggled.

"I'm not so good underwater as I used to be. But I didn't let that stop me!" Cindy stated. Eleanor smiled, and nodded.

"Th... thank you. Thank you..." Eleanor managed to say. The sea slug attached to a Little Sister's stomach... If he's still there, in me... he must have saved me...

The two girls overheard a woman's voice shouting for Cindy. The little girl looked up the island, and Eleanor turned her head. Eleanor saw the concrete perimeter surrounding Lady Liberty, a group of people forming, murmuring about the girl ashore no doubt.

"Mama, look! We found Eleanor!" Cindy almost cheered.

"Cindy! Get your shoes on! Are you hurt?" Amanda Melzter, Cindy's mother, nearly screamed, running towards her kid.

Eleanor sighed with relief, letting her body relax, though the jagged rocks under her weren't a decent bed. All she could do was lie down, and wait for help, just like back in Rapture. She sighed at that thought.

Though, this time... Father won't be seeing me, she thought to herself. Gradually, everything blurred, and then faded to darkness. Deep sleep.

* * *

Eleanor had a dream of Rapture. She dreamt she lied in that big, beautiful, red bed, under the covers. She slept peacefully and motionlessly, like a princess. On the chair was Mother's cigarette, smoking a little. Outside the glass entrance, well, stood no one.

Eleanor awoke in her dream, quite an oxymoronic scene. She stretched, feet poking beneath the cover, arms up, and she yawned like a sleepy cat. Letting her limbs drop, Eleanor lied, and waited.

Silence.

Just silence. Eleanor looked out the glass of the entrance, seeing water silently rising outside. The ceiling began dripping here and there, yet the drops were red. The water outside was also... red? The scent of blood flowed in the room.

After several seconds, Eleanor heard something move under the bed. Sounded like something briefly dragged across the floor, then she felt something tug at her blanket. Puzzled, Eleanor attempted to slide out of bed, but she could not. Her torso refused to budge. She felt the blanket tug again, slightly to the side. Then again. And again. Pause.

Eleanor felt a little scared. She turned her head and leaned over the bedside, seeing a pool of blood slowly flowing from underneath the bed. She froze. She heard something moving again, causing the blood to ripple. Tap, tap, drag. Tap, tap, drag, under the bed. Another tug of the blanket, this time to the other side.

Eleanor let her head fall into the pillow, wondering what was going on. The smell of roses flushed Eleanor's nostrils.

"It's a dream, this isn't real," she said, then tried to sit up, but could not.

Looking at her hands, then opening her palms, Eleanor saw blood. Her hands were covered in blood. She looked down, feeling that the blanket was... wet? She clutched the covers, blood oozing between her fingers. The bed suddenly nudged to the side, making Eleanor gasp aloud. She noticed blood leaking out her nose. She then tasted blood, and the redness began leaking out her mouth as well.

"Huh, wha, wha... what the hell?" Eleanor asked, feeling afraid. She now heard wet, squishy noises gradually getting louder. She paused in silence. Tiny puddles of blood began forming atop the blanket, seeping through the fabric from underneath.

Grasping the covers again, Eleanor was about to lift them, but hesitated. Did she really want to do this? The blanket tugged again, then the bed nudged upwards, feet knocking against the floor.

"Mom?" Eleanor called. She gritted her teeth, eyes wide, breathing harder, feeling her heart panic. Eleanor felt like a scared, pathetic little girl. For once in her life, she actually wanted Mother. Anyone was better than no one, now...

She looked out the glass of the entrance again, everything outside fileld up with blood. The face of a lifeless Splicer drifted by, pushing against the glass, deformed face briefly visibly. The face twitched, then drifted off.

A loud crack sounded from the ceiling, causing Eleanor to gasp. The bed buckled again. Breathing so hard her shoulders moved up and down, Eleanor lifted her head and looked down upon the blankets, and lifted them, taking a look into the darkness. From the darkness, a pair of glowing yellow eyes stared back at her.

Before Eleanor could do anything, the blanket slid sideways, and she lost grip of it. The blanket flipped up, blinding Eleanor, then fluttered away, revealing the other occupant of the bed. A giant, skinless, fleshy, serpentine face was chewing on Eleanor's body, her waist and legs already inside its mouth.

Eleanor gasped as the teeth sunk into her body repeatedly. She shot her hands against the monster's head, trying to push it away. Its nostrils breathed powerfully, blowing air and spattering blood over Eleanor like a set of bloody bellows. The monster writhed, then shook side to side, growling as if a dog with a chew toy, the glow in its yellow eyes intensifying.

Blood gushed out Eleanor's mouth and nose as the jaws crushed her belly. She wanted to scream for help, to use her Plasmids, to teleport, to do something! But nothing worked. She could not breathe, couldn't think, could not do anything. The monster swallowed, and Eleanor felt herself sink deeper down its mouth. The beast's fangs were up to her chest. Another swallow; Eleanor got pulled farther. She grabbed the monster, clawing her fingernails into its skinless nostrils, its exhaling breath hot on her fingers. She felt it sucking her body in, breath heating her body up as if she sat in a sauna. Another swallow. One more, and she'd be lunch.

A force latched onto the back of Eleanor's head, as if trying to rip her skull out. The beast reared with a snarl, mouth opening. Eleanor felt the bones in her neck and back popping, and then she sat up in a hospital bed. It was dark, nightime? Breathing hard through clenched teeth, Eleanor shook with fear. She never felt so scared since she saw Father shoot himself.

Eleanor groaned. She stopped shaking, lifted her knees, her head and shoulders dropped, and she placed a hand on her forehead. She sighed.

"Had a little nightmare, Eleanor?" she whispered to herself. "You need to grow up. Be a big girl, heh heh..." she continued, then lifted her head and let her arm drop. Around her hung transparent blinds. She saw IV hooked up to her arm, and she wore a silly garment. The shitty hospital bed had a rather thin blanket.

Eleanor turned her head, and behind the blinds, a pair of glowing yellow eyes glared at her. The beast slowly pushed its head through the blinds, mouth dripping blood. Eleanor sat motionlessly, not even breathing. The serpentine monster raised itself, eyeing Eleanor as if she were a mouse, its fangs protracting.

Eleanor blinked slowly, and realized the place was not as dark as it used to be. The monster was... gone? The blinds were normal, hanging still. The IV remained where it was, Eleanor also remaining in her sitting position. She slowly inhaled, then exhaled, and sighed. She put a hand on her forehead, and rested her elbow on her knee.

"Going crazy, huh?" she asked herself, then chuckled. She felt something on her face, a bandage? A large bandage covered her left eye. Another bandage covered the back of her head. With a groan, Eleanor let herself fall backwards into her terrible bed.


	18. Chapter 18 - Manhattan Madness

That morning, Eleanor was greeted by a nurse and a doctor. She was inside the Lower Manhattan Hospital. They chatted a bit, Eleanor answering generic questions about what happened last night. The nurse looked surprised, raising her eyebrows once in a while. The doc seemed pretentiously concerned, writing down notes as they spoke.

"...when you were brought in, there was no ID on you. But for now, we use what we've got. Ms. Lamb, I am afraid that-"

"I lost my right eye," Eleanor answered for the doc. _And my medallion..._

The doctor nodded with a slight groan.

"I must be the unluckiest girl in the world," Eleanor mumbled, crossing her arms and making herself comfortable.

"Well, that would not make much sense. You survived a gunshot through the eye and brain, got thrown into the sea, didn't drown, and a random girl pulled you ashore. I'd say you're the luckiest girl in the world," the doctor said.

Eleanor had a life both lucky and unlucky. The pain in her eye was not as severe as it used to be.

"We're not sure how you survived all that," the nurse commented. "How are you feeling? I am surprised you look so good despite what's happened to you."

Eleanor made a little smile, but said nothing.

"Eleanor!" a high-pitched voice squealed. Cindy ran to the scene, her mother walking after her. Eleanor turned her head, Cindy materializing at the bedside. "I made you a cupcake." Cindy raised a little white plate with both hands, on it a pretty pink cupcake with a strawberry on top. She cocked her head and grinned. "Just for you!"

Eleanor's heart melted. She smiled softly, eyelids lowering. Cindy was so cute acting the way she did. Big Sister accepted the present, Cindy anxiously waiting for her to take a bite. Memories of leaving Father gifts flooded Eleanor's mind for a moment. Eleanor took a bite.

"Do you like it?" Cindy asked.

"Yes, it's really good."

"Hih-hee hee! I worked really hard on it! Mommy helped me, too," Cindy explained, turning her head and looking at Amanda for a while. "Eleanor, are you feeling better?"

"Much better than last night."

"See!" Cindy squeaked, looking back at her mother, "I said the cupcake would make her better!" Amanda stroked her daughter's head.

Cindy then pulled something out her pocket, showing Eleanor. It was the Big Daddy doll.

"Little Daddy wanted to see you, too! I kept telling him you'd be okay."

Eleanor would have nothing to do all day, but she did not mind. Cindy stayed with her, running around and bringing toys from the children's section to Eleanor. Amanda stood by, sometimes chatting with Eleanor while Cindy ran about.

The child occasionally asked how Eleanor was doing and if she needed anything. No matter what Eleanor said, Cindy gradually piled more and more toys on Eleanor's bed. Clearly, Eleanor had no choice but to play with Cindy, however she could.

"Eleanor?" Cindy asked.

"Yes?"

"Are you _sure_ you don't need anything?"

"Yes, Cindy, I'm sure."

"Okay! But if you ever need anything, you tell me, okay?" Cindy suggested, then scurried off to fetch more toys.

"So, you going to ever have kids?" Amanda asked. Eleanor smiled, but held in a chuckle.

"No."

"I didn't want kids either, but she came along anyways. Even after leaving Mark... Rapture... You couldn't save Mark, but... Thank you, Eleanor, for bringing back my baby. I was expecting I would live the rest of my life in regret and ruin, but you changed that. I will come to visit you with Cindy every day until you get better." Amanda still looked a bit troubled by what happened in her life, but Eleanor would not bug her about it. Eleanor really did not want to think about Mark's death, or Father's death.

"Thanks, it means a lot. I really missed the Little... ones. It's so heartwarming to see Cindy again," Eleanor said, watching as Cindy played with blocks.

Soon, Amanda sat on a chair, and Cindy sat on the bed, basically playing with toys on Eleanor's face. At times, Cindy was quite annoying, but how could Eleanor ever interrupt the child? She wanted the kid to actually have a childhood.

Too bad hospital food sucked. The food looked good, but tasted bad. _Ugh, no wonder people are always sick in the hospital,_ Eleanor thought as she stared at the food on her lap.

"Eleanor, you have to eat your food!" Cindy stated, reading Eleanor's face. Cindy sure could be a little mommy.

"Well, maybe you want some?" Eleanor asked. Cindy stared at the food with big eyes. It sure looked different.

"Oh, well, maybe a lil' bit?" Cindy mumbled, picking a strip of meat and eating it. After a second of chewing, she spat the meat onto her hand, then tossed it away. Eleanor and Amanda snickered. "Um, no..." Cindy said, then focused on her toys again.

Eventually, the nurse came back, tapping Amanda's shoulder to speak to her. Eleanor was too sleepy to listen, but it was dark outside. Did the entire day really pass that quickly?

"Cindy?" Amanda asked, standing up from her chair. Cindy froze, then suddenly turning her head.

"Time to go?" she quietly asked. Mother nodded. Cindy's shoulder dropped and she pouted. "We have to let Eleanor have her rest. We will come back tomorrow, first thing after school."

"School's important, Cindy. Will you promise me to study hard?" Eleanor asked, Cindy looking at her with a paused, thoughtful expression.

"Don't worry Eleanor, I'll study hard! Promise!" Cindy chirped, then hopped off the bed, kicking several cubes, balls, and a few toys to the floor, including the Big Daddy doll. "Oops," Cindy whispered, quickly putting them back on the bed, gently. She stared at Little Daddy once she grabbed him, then put him in her pocket. He slouched in the pocket, head and arms dangling.

"See you tomorrow, Eleanor. We'll be back," Amanda said.

"Yeah! See you tomorrow," Cindy repeated, following her mother.

"See you tomorrow, Cindy," Eleanor said as the kid walked to her mother.

"Bye-bye, Eleanor!" Cindy waved as she walked with her mom, and they left.

"I just need to ask some questions, make some notes, and check your blood pressure," the nurse said kindly. After she finished, the nurse asked Eleanor if she needed anything. Eleanor did not, so the nurse left for the night.

Eleanor felt lonely again, only kids' toys keeping her company. She sighed.

* * *

Nighttime came, but Eleanor could not sleep. At times, the kids' toys were kinda creepy, seemingly staring at her with their unblinking faces. Suddenly, someone quietly stepped into the room, Eleanor immediately holding her breath and pretending to be asleep.

The man wore a grey suit, and held a pistol with a suppressor. He stepped on a ball and slipped, hitting the floor hard. Without thinking, Eleanor jumped out of bed, sudden movement causing her hospital gown to untie at the back, and she felt the fabric nearly slip off her body. Though, there was no time to worry about that, someone was clearly here to kill her!

Before the man could react, Eleanor kicked him across the jawbone, and he was out cold. Eleanor quickly grabbed the pistol and stood by the doorway, listening carefully. She heard quiet footfall down the hallway, the people probably having heard the first man's fall and approached to investigate.

Waiting patiently for a few seconds, Eleanor closed her eyes, sensing the approaching men. She leaned out of cover and fired as fast as she could. After a brief exchange of suppressed gunfire, bullet holes forming in the wall, four men hit the floor, dead grip still grasping their suppressed pistols, and blood oozing out their chests.

Several old people mumbled from nearby rooms, grumpy that they were awoken, but oblivious to what was going on.

Eleanor stepped out, her pistol slide locked backwards. She clutched her sternum. She had been shot a few times and bled, but the bullets failed to penetrate her body. If only she had her Big Sister suit, she would be quite durable.

One man was writhing and quietly groaning, dying on the floor. Eleanor shot him in the head, then knelt to examine the men. They all wore grey suits, just like the first man. She rummaged inside one man's jacket, putting down her pistol, and pulled out his wallet. Her left hand conjured a little flame so that she could see in the darkness, taking a look at the man's documents. She slipped out his ID.

The top of the paper read _Pinkerton's National_ , the two words curving over an image of a _left_ eye and eyebrow.

"My right eye is missing, too," Eleanor commented.

Under the eye, in small text, read _"WE NEVER SLEEP."_ Below that, read _Detective Agency_. Eleanor furrowed her eyebrows.

"Pinkerton's National Detective Agency? Huh...don't know who they are..." Eleanor whispered. She dropped the ID, and after some more searching, she found the man's badge. It was solid silver, with black lettering. The badge read: Pinkerton National Detective Agency, and had a Star of David in the centre.

The badge was absolute proof of who these men were. She just dropped the badge on the dead man's face, unable to find out why a private security organization was trying to kill her. Able to sense approaching danger, she deactivated her little flame, and picked up two pistols, holding one in either hand.

"Hey, you guys there or what?" someone whispered, walking from around the corner of the hallway. He held an Uzi with a suppressor. He and Eleanor looked at each other at the same time, and he instantly spun back behind the hallway. He then leaned out of his cover and opened fire, the suppressor not really doing much for an SMG, and gunfire echoed like crazy indoors.

Eleanor raised her pistols and returned fire. Bullets whizzed to and fro, ramming into walls and flooring, flinging tiny chunks of architecture. The man spun behind cover.

Various patients throughout the hallway grumbling or calling for help.

Eleanor stormed the man's position, and just as she ran around the corner of the hallway, something odd happened. The man had formed a tiny, horizontal tornado, and rammed into Eleanor. She was hit with such force she dropped her pistols and hit the floor hard, and her hospital gown had unraveled and slipped off her midair.

Instantly, Eleanor's palms slapped over her jiggling nipples, hiding her muffins, cheeks flushed red. The man pointed his gun down and opened fire again. Purple flashed; Eleanor was gone, bullets raking the floor for a second. The man was dumbstruck.

After a few heartbeats, the man turned around, and was suddenly lifted off the floor, glowing purple swirls in the air. He flailed his limbs, shouting, wildly firing the remaining bullets in his clip. Eleanor grabbed him by the head and, using a downward push of her telekinesis, slammed it into the floor. The man's head cracked open like an egg.

Dozens of patients were crying or wheezing from fright. Panic would soon spread throughout the hospital.

Eleanor began taking the man's jacket off, her lithe body bleeding and swelling here and there. She heard footfall echoing from both directions, accompanied by the sounds of cocking slides.

"Aww, shit!" Eleanor cursed, then darted for her gown, still covering her little tits.

Unfortunately, two groups of grey men appeared, from either end of the hallway, all armed with suppressed pistols or Uzis. Eleanor had two choices: grab her gown, or a pistol. She chose the pistol, and was caught in a crossfire with nothing but her panties.

As bullets and patients shrieked everywhere, Eleanor had no choice but to disappear. She reappeared at the main floor, overhearing panic spreading throughout the floors of the hospital. But, at least she was safe for now.

"Dammit! There has to be something to wear, somewhere!" Eleanor whined, an arm over her breasts. She looked for a shirt, or anything, really, even a towel would be better than nothing. Alas, there was nothing in sight.

Sensing that the grey men were running down the stairs, Eleanor knew she had to get out of here. She could have simply used her fiery Plasmids, of course, but did not want to risk burning down the hospital and killing everyone. So, she darted toward the exit.

A rush of wind sounded, lifting Eleanor, the bandages over her eye and back of her head breaking off. She found herself floating, her body having an aura of yellow cracks.

"Oh, no! No, no, no, no, no!" She had no idea what was going on, but she could barely move, as if disabled by this...force.

One by one, the men in grey rushed out the stairs, storming the bottom floor and instantly opening fire at the disabled Eleanor. Bullets grazing her mostly naked body and zipping past her ears, Eleanor managed to point her pistol and fire back. By the time her magazine was empty, she had shot two men in the chest, and they pulled out of the gunfight, a third shot in the head and dead.

Once the floating effect ended, Eleanor dropped her empty pistol and hit the floor, landing on all fours like a cat. She then spun around, throwing a ring of purple psychokinetic power at the gang. Most of them were hurled off their feet, guns and hats flying as well.

"Don't let her get away!" one of the men shouted as he picked himself up.

Taking the advantage, Eleanor used her telekinesis to pull an Uzi towards herself, which she caught midair and opened fire at her pursuers. Most of them dove to the sides or hit the floor, returning fire. One of them stuck his hand out, hand blackening and fingers looking skeletal, and some sort of fiery orb formed. He seemed to be unharmed by Eleanor's gunfire, and then he threw the orb at Eleanor. It exploded in her face, staggering her.

After emptying her Uzi's clip, Eleanor ran for the doors, slamming into them; locked. She unlocked them using her telekinetic Plasmid, then opened the doors, and paused.

"Oh god, I can' believe I'm doing this..." Eleanor said to herself, bullets spraying all around her...

Dozens of late night people had gathered outside the hospital, some drivers stopping their cars to see what was going on. The citizens kept their distance and wondered why there was so much noise. Some hospital patients were screaming out their windows for help.

"What the heck's going on?"

"Did the Mafia enter the hospital or something?"

"Oh my! when will the police come?"

Amidst murmuring, the crowd saw Eleanor running down the street with nothing but her panties, hands over her breasts. This was, undoubtedly, Eleanor's most embarrassing moment.

The men in grey ran after Eleanor, and continued firing down the streets. People screamed and ran off, cars' tires screeched, and night traffic swerved. Nevertheless, Eleanor quickly outran her pursuers, hearing bullets hitting cars, windows, and streetlights far behind her.

Running around a corner, Eleanor put her back against a wall. Panting heavily, Eleanor felt blood leak out her nose, mouth, head, front, back, and thighs. She had been peppered by bullets, covered with red holes and swelling spots.

She groaned. Eleanor sat down heavily, her bare back sliding down the wall, feeling her spine and skin scrape, smearing blood. Eleanor felt her panties soak with blood, a puddle of red forming under her butt. She did not even have the energy to cover her tits, but the cool night air felt good over her skin.

Eleanor's purple psychokinetic ring appears around her, forming into a sphere. She winces, then moans as her telekinesis pulls bullets out her body, dinging as they drop to the concrete. Some bullets did pierce her flesh, but failed to break her bones. In fact, many bullets were smooshed.

"Oh my, are you all right?" a man asked, walking to Eleanor with his head high, looking oblivious to everything.

"Go away..." Eleanor replied weakly but sternly, then to her surprise, the man pushes her down and mounts her. After a second, she realizes what he's trying to do.

"I like hot girls," the man remarks like a stupid boy.

"Get...OFF ME!" Eleanor shouts, pushing the man off her, using enough strength to actually hurl the man a few feet into the air.

He landed facedown, hat falling off, and he is quite confused. When he looks up, a big fiery mass ploughs into him.

"And I like hot guys," Eleanor remarked as the man engulfed into flames, screaming for as long as he had air in his lungs.

As the flames ate away his clothes and skin, his scream died out, and he sharply inhaled, but just felt smoke and fire flow down his throat. Suffocation while burning to death meant he could only weakly writhe. Eleanor did not care, and limp away grumpily, hearing the crackling body be consumed by fire.

Several passersby ran away from Eleanor, and police sirens screamed in the distance.

"Ugh...I don't want to deal with people..." Eleanor groaned, her natural painkiller wearing off. She looked up, and got an idea, but she heard a car screech to a halt nearby. The driver lowered his window.

"Dear God! Are you okay? What happened to you?" he asked, then looked at the flaming corpse. He looks back at Eleanor, but she's gone.

Eleanor reappeared, now alone, the echoes of sirens rising from below. She walks to a ledge, leaving behind bloody footprints, and looks down, several hundred feet between her and the roads below. She is standing atop a skyscraper, blood leaking down her wounds, and a breeze causing her dark hair to flow.

Noticing something mysterious, Eleanor looked up. She sees the moon, and just stares at it.

"Hunh...it's beautiful." She sits down, patiently waiting for her EVE to restore.

Once able, Eleanor teleports from skyscraper to skyscraper, rooftop to rooftop. Indeed, she has much more privacy this way, and at times, feels good being topless above the city. Gradually, her wounds stop bleeding. She channels her EVE into her sea slug, and slowly regenerates. However, she had a feeling her eyeball would remain missing for a while.

* * *

Before sunrise, Eleanor teleported into a clothes store. She really has no choice but to take a few things without permission. So, she slips on some casual clothing: white socks, blue shirt, jeans (that make her butt look good), and helps herself to a nice pair of leather shoes and a short dark brown jacket that matches her hair.

"Now, I actually look American, hee hee..." Eleanor whispers, checking herself out in a mirror. She still looks quite beat up, but teleports back to the rooftops.

Amidst her teleportations, Eleanor notices the sun beginning to rise. Then, she senses something. She does not really know what this feeling is, but it seems...familiar? Staring off into the first rays of the sun, Eleanor decided she has to follow this feeling.

Looking over the ledge of the building, Eleanor was rather surprised to see a grey car slowly driving along. It's the same one as before. Eleanor grunts with irritation.

"Do they just know where I am?" she asks herself, but she would never give up.

After a routine of teleporting and waiting, Eleanor soon loses the grey car. She cannot see it anywhere, but then sees another grey car slowly driving along. Her eyebrows furrow, her fists clench. She quickly controls herself, and calms down.

"Hunh...they definitely have an idea of where I am...but how?" Eleanor asks herself, then walks along the rooftop, and teleports yet again.

A while later, Eleanor senses she nears her destination, whatever it could be. She teleports amidst a rather shoddy neighbourhood, and looks around. No grey cars. _Good._

Following her instinct, Eleanor teleported into one of the homes, a small but nice one. She looks around, no one anywhere, save for a man sitting on a chair. That is, he is also tied to the chair, and there's a sackcloth over his head, with a red hole on the front. Blood was dripping over his lap, and on the floor, another Pinkerton badge sat.

"Looks like gangs on the surface are no better than Rapture's," Eleanor whispered, then heard something. She goes upstairs to investigate, occasionally hearing sharp breaths and moaning.

"Sounds like someone's being tortured," Eleanor whispered, so she suddenly burst into the bedroom, ready to rip out someone's throat. Instead, she sees two people in bed gasp aloud, the woman on top and quickly lifting up the blankets to cover herself.

Eleanor pauses mid-rear, head tilted back, eyes big, eyebrows crooked, mouth open, a look of disgust clearly written on her face. Eleanor's surprise turns to anger.

" _Mom!_ "


	19. Chapter 19 - Relentless

"Oh, God, Eleanor! Don't you ever knock?" Mother whined, clutching the blanket over her naked body while sliding off her partner, and then reaching for a pile of clothes.

"Get dressed, you." Eleanor walked out the bedroom. She stood with her back to the wall, head low, arms crossed, quite grumpy. She rather hated Mother's accent, rather slow speaking, and quite annoying tone. Yet, at the same time, Mother's voice truly felt motherly, soothing, a perfect mask for her sinister nature.

Eventually, Mother left the room, also grumpy. She wore a black shirt and jeans, similarly to Eleanor, coincidentally. Mother's hair was quite messy, and she crossed her arms, tilted her head, and somewhat glared at her pesky daughter. The two looked at each other.

"So...fucking guys, now?" Eleanor asked sternly, keeping eye contact. Although it was none of her business, Eleanor felt angry. This was not what mothers do. Mother's eyebrows furrowed.

"Ask yourself, Eleanor-"

"Shut the fuck up, mom," Eleanor interrupted. Sofia remained unflinching, but paused. Indeed, Mother realized that Eleanor had changed, and needed a second to read the new Eleanor. The realization that so many years of nurturing totally failed made Sofia scowl. But, the blonde broad quickly regained her composure. After all, not even Eleanor could make Sofia quit.

"My daughter...I know you all too know well-"

"Why did you fuck him?" Eleanor interrupted again. Mother thought for a second.

"For his better good."

"I thought you criticized sexual pathos?" Eleanor asked. "You were always a hypocrite."

"You have simply chosen to see what you want to, Eleanor. I nurtured you brilliantly, my daughter. But, although you rejected everything you were meant for...and although you have surpassed even my intellect...it is still my task to answer to the chains of evolution. The worship of greed and pride is even more prevalent on the surface. I can't change you, Eleanor, but I can begin again. Not for myself, not for you, not for the next Lamb...but for the loyalty of altruism."

Eleanor tilted her head, her one eyelid partly closing, giving Mother a stern look.

"You want another baby? To start all of that all over again? Huh, well, at least this time you're not minimizing your role in reproduction. But, you know, Mother, what a good definition of an idiot is? 'Someone who tries the same thing over and over again, expecting a different result.'"

Sofia remained composed and focused, unphased by her girl's snappy attitude. Eleanor was not even surprised Mother did not ask about her missing eyeball.

"I am patient, Eleanor, you should know better. What I see in you...a different Eleanor, clearly not the daughter I once new, the daughter the world needed. I see a lost girl with depression, anxiety, sexual urges...responses to your imprisonment in the great chain. A child with no purpose, no direction, no life, no beliefs. The liberty you have chosen makes you just like Andrew." Sofia's words slightly hurt Eleanor.

"I observed my world, and concluded I could do better. And I did, with the help of Father and the little ones. Your ideas are nothing but sophistry and collectivism, a rejection of the individual. But what you never understood, is that the individual creates these ideas, and can also destroy them. Father wiped out The Rapture Family, and mostly by himself. That is the power of the individual, Mother."

"And all nothing but dissatisfaction, naturally corrupt, slavery of the self...and the creation of the tyrant, who by force and guile, enchains everything. The tyrant measures and cuts, examines and separates. Like the tyrant, Eleanor, you have no family, no friends, no country. Congratulations, Eleanor, you have enjoyed the delusion of free will. Tricked by your genes, tempted by emotion, destroyed by nature," Sofia explained, Eleanor feeling like she was actually in Rapture again. Memories of Mother's lectures when she was a child came back.

Eleanor leaned into Mother, neither breaking eye contact.

"When we escaped Rapture...what was everything you said to me? All a fucking lie? Even when I wanted the best for you? When I tried to show you what morals should be?" Eleanor asked, but Mother scoffed. "You're a psychopath," Eleanor stated, leaning into Mother so that their foreheads bumped, "And one who thinks she's too good for the natural world." The two heard someone walking.

Eleanor saw the man who Mother was fucking standing in the doorway, buttoning up his shirt. She looked at his sternum, cruelly mapped with twisting scars, covering the entire breadth of his lower rib cage.

The man was an inch taller than Eleanor, middle-aged. He had short white hair, and bushy eyebrows, also white. His blue eyes had emptiness and sadness, and Eleanor actually felt sorry for him, but then glared at him with her one eye.

"Uhh...sorry," the man remarked, keeping his head low. He looked at the two ladies, all of them thinking about the arguing. "Well, give a man some power, and he falls in all kinds of love with himself," he remarked, as if admitting something.

Mother looked back at Eleanor, and crossed her arms. Whether it was oxymoronic to call Sofia Lamb a psychopath or not, was anyone's guess, but it certainly stuck to her.

"I will grow old and die, knowing my own daughter rejected my beliefs, but this is a sacrifice I am willing to make, to give up the truth that is in the body." Sofia explained, then looked at the man, "Unlike my failed child, _he_ understands me. _He_ is a man who could end sin itself, a man who opposed the tyrant in him." Sofia looked back at Eleanor, "As for the daughter, I will hear her wailing and gnashing as she falls into the darkness created by her false father."

The man winced as he heard a loud slap, Sofia hitting the floor, clutching her face. Eleanor grabbed Mother by the neck with one hand and lifted her off the floor, then slammed her against the wall and lifted her against it. Eleanor's face was cold and empty, and she squeezed, just hard enough to block airflow. Sofia grasped Eleanor's forearm with both hands, but was stuck.

"Good God! Put her down!" the man yelled once he regained his senses. He grabbed Eleanor's arm and tried to yank it down. His eyes widened once he realized Eleanor did not even budge. The girl turned her head, giving him a rather frightening, snakelike look. The man slightly reared, Eleanor's dark hair, big blue eye, and fierce look giving him horrible memories.

"Please, child...she is sorry! She's sorry," the man implored, but Eleanor did not buy it. Sofia was now shaking from lack of oxygen, and Eleanor glared at him again.

"You are the one who shot the taxi driver in the head, then dragged me out the car," Eleanor almost yelled to him. "You are the reason I got kidnapped, you son of a bitch." He hesitated.

"No! It's not what it seems! I wanted to take you away from the Pinkerton's! Bastards then caught up and took you away from me," the man explained, but Eleanor was unconvinced. Sofia began kicking, and her eyes rolled back.

The man neared Eleanor, gently putting his hand on her shoulder, and she looked at him.

"Eleanor, chi _-hl-hl-_ ld...I'm so sorry."

Eleanor dropped her mother, the woman coughing and wheezing to regain air. The man knelt and put a hand on Sofia, and Eleanor just walked away, heading downstairs.

As morning became brighter, Eleanor grumpily sat at the table, having poured herself a bowl of cereal. Spoon tinging against the glass, teeth crunching cornflakes, Eleanor's eyes turned, and she saw the man standing nearby. He had a holstered Smith & Wesson Model 29-2 at his side, having a barrel over eight inches long. He looked nervous.

"So...did you shoot him in the head, too?" Eleanor demanded, referring to the dead man in the chair. He still didn't look too good.

"No." The guy sat at the table beside Eleanor, carefully, hoping not to make Eleanor angry. She slightly pulled her bowl of cereal away from him. "He was already here when we got home. He's Benny Stango, a detective from New York City. Got involved with the Pinkerton's, tried to call 'em out, and paid for it. They killed him here to make a statement. Your cab driver was also a target; someone else would have killed him if not me. And now, I'm next, for...failing to take you to them."

"So you went upstairs to fuck my mom."

"Aw, jeez, can't you give me a break? It was for old time's sake. I played cards with her once, back in Rapture. I just wanted to relax before being on the run again."

"Why are the Pinkerton's after you?" Eleanor asked, but he just shrugged. Eleanor got angry and punched him in the shoulder. He was surprised by how much the punch hurt.

"Huhh, look...I don't really know. They think I still owe them something from long ago, a contract from before the First World War. I guess it has something to do with...an ancestor of mine. Talk about greed and hatred," the man explained, but Eleanor felt he was not telling the truth.

"More importantly, why do some of them have Plasmids?"

"Hunh? Oh, well, they...I don't know. Nothing makes sense anymore."

"Hm. Wait, did you say you met my mother in Rapture?" Eleanor asked, he nodded.

"Yes, I...was a private detective."

"Huh. You are?"

"B-...Zachary."

"Hm. How's mom?"

"In bed, resting. Thanks, for not killing her. And I know how hard it can be to...let go. You don't wanna wake up one day realizing you didn't like what you chose."

"What's she been up to?" Eleanor asked, not really caring what the man spoke about.

"Heh, she's quite talented in what she does. Got a cult going on after meeting some guy. Think his name was Michael. I sure don't know what she's talking about most of the time."

"She met a man named Michael? What was his last name?" Eleanor asked, intrigued.

"'Ater' or 'Vader' or something like that."

"Vay Atar..."

"Yeah, something like that. Their cult is mostly Irish Catholics. Seems like every city has its fair share of fools. But...when I saw Sofia again...well, let's just say it sure would be nice to settle down with someone."

"Settle down with Mother? I really think you should reconsider," Eleanor warned. Zachary gave Eleanor a semi-offended look.

"What happened to your eye, by the way?" he asked.

"Got shot in the face, by another Benny," Eleanor answered, then the two heard a car stop outside.

Immediately, Zachary pulled out his .44 Magnum revolver and ran to the kitchen window.

"Aww, shit... It's the Pinkerton's," Zachary cussed. He did not wait, pistol whipping the glass broken, then pulled the hammer back with his thumb, and fired. The gunshot echoed powerfully, reverberating throughout the house.

Eleanor grabbed her bowl with both hands and gulped everything down (she was rather hungry), then jumped to her feet as pistols rained bullets against the house. To her surprise, she saw Zachary raise a hand and blast an electric bolt through the window. A translucent yellowish aura formed around him, but then cracked apart when too many bullets hit him. He then he spun behind cover as another surge of electricity blasted into the kitchen.

"Dammit! Get to your mother, make sure she's alright!" Zachary ordered.

"No! You go make sure she's alright! I'll hold them off!" Eleanor shouted, darting off like a cheetah to the entrance.

When Zachary looked out the window again, he saw large fireballs arching upon the car, exploding on impact, hurling two Pinkerton's through the air, smoking. While their grey car burst into flames, Eleanor used her telekinesis to lift the agents and slam them headfirst into the sidewalk, knocking them out. Zachary lifted his eyebrows.

"Huh, well that's convenient," he remarked, then ran upstairs to fetch Sofia. He found her waddling down the hallway, still in pain from Eleanor's choke lift, yet fearless.

"What's...going on?" Sofia asked, but Zachary just picked her up bridal style and kissed her cheek.

"We gotta go!" Zachary exclaimed, and ran down the stairs with her. He put her down, grabbing his car keys from the wall, and they got their shoes on. Zachary also filled his pockets with .44 Magnum bullets, put a sports jacket on, and put his wallet in his pocket.

Zachary exited the house, seeing Eleanor use her psychokinesis to pull the agents' pistols into her hands. He saw some people off in the distance, either running away or looking at the blazing car.

"Ahh...of course. Just like her false father, she can't go a single day without fighting...just like an animal," Mother scorned, crossing her arms, going back into Rapture Family mode.

"Ohh, for fuck's sake, woman..." Eleanor growled.

"We ain't got time to argue! Into the car!" Zachary shouted, picking Sofia up bridal style again and heading to the driveway.

Parked in the driveway was a 4-door sedan, a Hudson Hornet from the Fifties. Rather outdated, but still a big V8 American car. Well, Zachary opened the back door and threw Sofia in, then jumped into the driver's seat and got it started. He then looked to the side, seeing Eleanor teleport into the car. She looked back at him.

"What?" she asked.

"Nothing," Zachary replied. Tires screaming, he drove out the driveway, just as three Pinkerton cars geared up and raced after them.

"Mom, catch," Eleanor said, tossing one pistol at Mother, who caught the gun and looked at it weird.

The Pinkerton car at the front floored it, catching up to Zachary, so he suddenly turned at a red light, cars honking, and raced down the road. The Pinkerton's chased after them nonetheless. An agent in the passenger seat of the lead car opened his window, leaned out, and opened fire with an Uzi.

"Get down!" Zachary screamed, everyone lowering their heads as bullets thudded into the back of the car, rear window cracking and getting holes. Zachary swerved into oncoming traffic, nearly crashing into honking cars, but still driving.

Sofia straightened her back, unaffected by anything.

"Congratulations, we get to experience the natural human condition of evolutionary competition," Sofia remarked, almost sounding bored.

"Shut up, woman!" Zachary and Eleanor shouted at the same time while more bullets shot at their car, some whizzing past Eleanor's head and putting holes in the windshield.

Eleanor opened her window and leaned out a bit, feeling wind raking her face and flick her hair like crazy. She aimed and fired back at her pursuers, hitting the windshield and engine, but the car continued racing, hood smoking. People on both sides of the road fled in panic, and Eleanor hoped she did not accidentally shoot any of them.

"Mom! Do something!" Eleanor yelled.

"I need glasses to see. Glasses that _you_ broke," Mother reminded. Eleanor looked at Mother, rolling her eyes. Soon, Sofia finally turned around and fired her pistol through the rear window, but dropped it, and then checked to see if she broke a nail. Eleanor shook her head.

The driver pushed on the cracked glass until his windshield broke apart, and then he cast an electric bolt forth, hitting the back of Zachary's car. The electricity surged through the car, all three occupants shouting from pain. His car even died from the electromagnetic pulse, but continued rolling along.

Nevertheless, Zachary regained himself, turning his car back on, exhaust pipe fuming and engine roaring. He continued increasing speed, swerving amidst traffic on both lanes and sometimes suddenly steering down streets. But, no matter what he did, the Pinkerton's pursued him relentlessly, the second electro bolt missing and hitting a streetlight instead. The gunner reloaded his Uzi and released another stream of bullets, sometimes hitting other cars and who knows who else.

Eleanor quickly emptied her pistol clip, seeing blood smeared along the inside of the chasing car's windshield. The driver was hit. He slouched over the steering wheel and suddenly skidded to the side, his gunner falling out the window, the vehicle crashing into oncoming traffic. Eleanor winced at the accident.

"Well...one car down, two to go," Eleanor commented, the next car roaring, and sure enough, a second Uzi-wielding agent stuck his head out his window and opened fire like a maniac.

The second car was driven quite aggressively, nearing top speed while the Uzi ripped into the trunk of the car and back tires. Zachary managed to control the car even with the back tires blown out, but now, there was no way he could outrun his pursuers. The car behind him rammed into him, but the big V8 Hudson Hornet continued driving, wheels scraping against the road and sending sparks.

Mother gripped her pistol firmly and fired back, her shots pecking into the Pinkerton car's hood and not much else. Her last shot struck the Uzi-wielding agent in the shoulder. He grimaced and slid back into his car. Regardless, the second car sped up and drove alongside Zachary's right, the driver holding his wheel in one hand and withdrawing a pistol. Eleanor amassed an anti-gravitational shield to protect herself, bullets slowed by it and bouncing off her body.

"Take the wheel!" Zachary yelled, Eleanor doing so, then Zachary aimed his revolver across Eleanor and fired, thumb pulling back the hammer after each shot. The .44 Magnum rounds shot clean through the agent's door and went into his side. He scrunched up from pain, the gunner grabbing the wheel.

Zachary stuck his hand out his window, hurling a big chunk of ice. The second car was out of the chase when the chunk of ice hit it, freezing over. Wheels icebound, the car slid across the road.

The third car swerved around the sliding icy one and continued the chase, the frozen car slamming against a building and sending shards of ice fluttering everywhere. A third Uzi guy popped out and unleashed another torrent of bullets into the already-perforated Hudson Hornet. The rear window shattered. Mother grabbed her head and cuddled up, hoping not to get shot.

"Jesus! They sure don't give up easily!" Zachary exclaimed. Eleanor noticed the translucent yellow aura reappeared around him, withstanding the bullets fired at him from behind.

"Drive as smooth as you can!" Eleanor shouted, leaning out the car, then throwing explosive fireballs at the third car.

Since her car was always shaking and swerving, Eleanor's Plasmids kept missing, hitting the road. To make things worse, the Uzi was aimed at her, and she felt bullets whizzing past her ears!

"Let me help out!" Zachary shouted. Extending an arm out the window, he charged up and dropped a Devil's Kiss trap. The pursuers steered around the trap but it exploded anyways, the Pinkerton car smoking from underneath.

The driver swerved from surprise, then one of Eleanor's fiery Plasmids hit the car's hood, then a second hit its roof, and the car was set on fire. The driver suddenly turned from panic and heat, and the car screeched and rolled over.

"Ahh! Ha ha haaa!" Eleanor cheered, pulling her head back into the car.

Sofia sat up, looking around, bullet holes everywhere. Yet, incredibly, she was mostly unharmed, bullets only nicking her skin and cutting her up here and there.

"We're not done yet," Zachary remarked, he and Eleanor looking ahead, seeing perhaps thirty Pinkerton's lining across the road behind a roadblock of cars.

"We're not stopping, no matter what!" Zachary yelled, pushing the gas pedal to the floor, engine growling with whatever functionality it had left. The agents up ahead raised their pistols or Uzis. "Get down" Zachary shouted, he and his passengers doing so.

Many bullets fired like crazy. Some on the Pinkerton's cast electric bolts or hurled explosive fireballs. Eleanor formed a telekinetic shield in front of the car, to slightly slow down the incoming projectiles. Regardless, the front of the Hudson Hornet receiving all sorts of punishment. Bullets shredded the front of the car, the windshield shattered, the hood popped open, and electric bolts and fireballs that hit the car put it on fire.

Engine flaming and smoking, it roared its last breath of utter defiance against the Pinkerton's. As the agents ran off to the sides, the Hudson Hornet smashed through the noses of two cars just as Eleanor unleashed a powerful psychokinetic burst, and actually continued driving!

One of the Pinkerton's cast a freezing force, extinguishing the flames. Zachary's car mostly icebound, the wheels had no traction, and it slid diagonally. One of the agents unleashed a Bucking Bronco, and Zachary's car rolled over. Sliding to a halt, the Hudson Hornet had finally stopped moving. The Pinkerton's waited patiently.

Zachary kicked his door open, flakes of ice and glass fluttering, and crawled out, coughing. Sofia crawled out behind him, dizzy and dazed. Both were rather scrapped up and bruised.

"Sofia! You okay?" Zachary asked, Mother nodding. He then picked up his revolver from inside the car. He could hear sirens echoing. "Oh, thank god, about damn time coppers are coming... Eleanor? You okay?" he continued, but there was no reply.

Zachary opened his revolver's cylinder, taking out the shells and putting a few new bullets in. He leaned out the side of his crashed car, and was greeted with more bullets. His shields promptly shattered but he returned fire, but there was no way a single-action revolver could compete with two dozen gunmen. He ducked, then saw swirling purple appear above the roadblock.

Eleanor dropped down, landing atop one of the agents with such force, her feet slammed him against the road and broke his shoulders. She then put her hands together, amassing fire, then hurled a barrage of explosive fiery projectiles continuously and rapidly. The Plasmids exploded all around Eleanor, hurling Pinkerton's, engulfing their cars, and creating an inferno.

Sofia and Zachary got up and watched the inferno. As if pushing aside a pair of curtains, Eleanor stepped through the flames, unharmed by the fire. She casually walked forth, hip sway feminine, and pushed a hand through her hair, untroubled by her few cuts and scratches.

"Uhh...well done?" Zachary remarked.

"You were casting Plasmids," Eleanor commented, crossing her arms. "I have a feeling you know how the Pinkerton's got theirs."

"I, well...When they found me, they took me in and did some genetic experiments. Apparently, the Vigors I drank modified my genes, and they were able to replicate Vigors, I guess?" Zachary replied, but he was clearly uncertain of it all. Eleanor gave him a weird look.

"Vigors?"

"Vigors, Plasmids, whatever."

"Pffhuh. See how our genes cause us to behave as animals?" Mother commented.

"Says the one who was fuelling me with ADAM for how long?" Eleanor remarked.

"Let's just go! Before we get into any more trouble," Zachary exclaimed, starting his walk as firefighting trucks, police cars and ambulances approached the scene. He holstered his revolver, hiding it under his sports jacket.

"And where are we going?" Eleanor asked.

"Away," Zachary replied, the two girls walking after him as everything burned behind them.

"We're going to church, actually," Sofia said, quickly walking ahead of Zachary. "East 51st Street right there. We go down to St. Patrick's Cathedral, so that my real family can help me," she continued. Zachary shrugged, but that was the plan.

Michael's message popped in Eleanor's thoughts. She furrowed her eyebrows, finding it hard to believe such chances. It was as if, no matter what she did, she was always progressing where she had to go. As she followed Mother, she turned around, and saw something big and red briefly, but it quickly stepped into the flames and smoke, disappearing from sight.

 _Exactly what I saw in Ireland..._ Eleanor thought to herself. _I'll have to get to the bottom of this, now._


	20. Chapter 20 - Stigmata

The scruffy trio made their way down the street of Manhattan, getting a fair amount of looks from passersby, the echoes of wailing sirens far behind them. Eleanor and Sofia sometimes exchanged angry glances, but stayed quiet, whilst Zachary frequently scanned the area, ready for anything. The white-haired man had an aura of someone not to fuck with, so no one bothered them.

Eventually, Eleanor, Zachary and Sofia saw the cathedral appear off in the distance, and in the opposite direction, the Atlas Statue at Rockefeller Centre. She did not know why, but something about that statue felt...familiar, as if it was the reason she was here.

Mother seemed pleased, and stroked her head, making her hair look nicer.

"Ahh. See, now, how the cathedral remains standing? Unlike your Rapture, Ryan, unlike Rapture..." Sofia spoke, probably to herself.

"And you're sure there's people who can help us? Or are you just pretending to be Christian to manipulate people?" Eleanor asked with a rude tone of voice. Mother did not react, and continued walking, almost bumping her shoulder into some guy yet not reacting to him, either.

"Are you going to answer me? Or keep acting like a fucking cunt?" Eleanor snapped. Zachary gave her a weird look, and Eleanor felt a little guilty. Making puppy dog eyes, Eleanor stroked her hair, eyes low. She never imagined herself talking to her mother this way, as horrible as she was, yet it came out.

"Ascension is near, Eleanor. We will be reborn." Mother's answer gave Eleanor flashbacks of her Rapture: the graffiti messages, the candles, the drapes, the spiritual feel of Mother's speeches...

"Your Rapture failed, just like Ryan's... _Mother_ ," Eleanor replied, giving _Mother_ an acidic tone.

"And, yet, here I still am, unlike your false father. _I_ do not fail, even when _my_ own daughter was against me. So ask yourself, Eleanor, did _I_ raise you right?"

"Not as good as dear Father," Eleanor answered with a smirk. Mother huffed.

"Could we please just focus on the task at hand?" Zachary asked as they neared the cathedral.

Looking up at the cathedral, Eleanor felt the building's grandeur wave upon her. She was even a little intimidated, but this was where she would find Michael Vay Atar, whoever he may be.

As for Zachary, he seemed unaffected by the giant church. In fact, he looked rather disappointed, as if a big chore was ahead of him. Sofia did not seem to care about anything, and, swinging the doors open, stepped right in, chin up.

As Eleanor and Zachary followed Sofia, Eleanor looked up and around. The interior of the cathedral was beautiful, stunning. Down the aisle, wooden pews, and then immense pillars holding up the House of God. Definitely more beautiful than whatever trinkets and decorations The Rapture Family assembled down in Rapture.

"My congregation...they are not here? But they were always here. Hunh," Mother spoke to herself.

Mother walked down the aisle without further ado, Zachary looked around cautiously, and Eleanor followed without much thinking. Eleanor wondered why Zachary was looking around, and then she realized why. Here and there, people knelt between the pews, all of them wearing black shiny robes, hoods covering their heads. They knelt with their heads low, palms together, rosaries around their necks. At first, all of the robed people seemed to be praying fervently and motionlessly. However, as Eleanor walked down the aisle, few by few, the robed ones turned their heads and seemingly stared at her. The only faces Eleanor could see was the blackness within their hoods.

"Is it someone new?"

The man's voice echoed up the cathedral, his voice deep and rich, yet monotonous. He stood, appearing behind the altar. All at the same time, the robed people stood up as well, but kept their heads low and palms together. Eleanor and Zachary turned their backs for a second, making sure nothing bad happened.

"I don't like this..." Zachary mumbled, but the three continued walking nonetheless.

"Ahh, Eleanor... _matre pulcha, filia pulchrior...Sancta Virgo Virginum,_ " the man behind the altar spoke. He wore a garment that appeared to be a hooded cassock, hood covering his head, and a white ferraiolo worn over the cassock. A golden crucifix hung from his neck. He had long dark brown hair, hanging over either collarbone, and a long, thick beard that sat on his chest like a mat.

"Michael...my congregation. Where are they?" Sofia demanded.

"They will be here soon. As you can see, I needed the cathedral for myself, for a time," the man replied.

The man turned his head at Eleanor's direction, then extended his right arm, ferraiolo partly unfurling, gesturing her? She and her two friends walked to the altar, and approached the man. Sofia crossed her arms and made a focused face, whilst Zachary kept looking around slowly, as if expecting something dangerous to happen.

The man kept his arm out, Eleanor noticing a hole in the centre of his hand, a square opening clean through the flesh, but the bones and tendons were visible. The skin around the hole was missing, and the man had unusually long fingernails. Eleanor slightly furrowed her eyebrows, not because of the rather grotesque injury, but because she smelled...roses?

"Eleanor... _Agnus Dei_...our Saviour...has finally come. She had descended into hell, then she ascended to the right hand of the Father," the man continued, stepping to Eleanor and gently placing his right hand on her shoulder. He put his left hand over his heart, Eleanor seeing that his left hand had the same injury as his right, and the scent of roses amplified.

Eleanor stepped back while pushing the man's hand off her, a few drops of blood falling out the hole.

"I'm not joining any cult, pal. A Big Sister, somehow, gave me a letter from you, all the way from Rapture. Then, this man, Benny Chairman, tried to kill me, so your advice clearly did not work. Next time, be a little more specific in your warnings, I lost an eye because of that, _Michael_ ," Eleanor spoke rather angrily.

"You do not believe, but the Lord Jesus Christ and his Almighty Father believe in you," the man said.

Mr. Atar spread his forearms out but kept his elbows near his torso, palms up, and he tilted his head. Eleanor saw that his lower right torso was bloodied.

"Eleanor, little Lamb, you are not who I remember. You have changed. Oh yes, you have. Or, perhaps it is only _malus pudor_? You talk differently, you act differently... No longer do we behold the awakened child mimicking her father. No, she has truly gone beyond her fever dream. Now, we see the child becoming a woman, the woman she wants to be."

"Whatever. What do you want from me?" Eleanor asked.

Michael clasped his hands behind his back.

"Is it just me, or does the place smell like roses?" Zachary mumbled to himself.

"Shh, Zachary, you are disturbing them..." Sofia whispered.

"Ah, yes, so Benny found you. You took the cab numbered seventy-seven, even after I warned you of that number. He shot you in the eye, but little Cindy happened to see you floating in the sea. She is also responsible for saving your life, by accident. But many things can happen by accident," Michael explained, Eleanor narrowing her eyes.

"How did you know all that?" Eleanor asked.

"Ohh...Eleanor, truly, have you not realized that I have always been in you?"

"No, actually."

"An honest answer, from an honest Lamb. You will understand everything, in due time. You are, after all, a golden child, a Utopian, not quite perfect just yet, but...you are very smart, little one."

Eleanor was not happy by Michael's sophistry, _He's just like Mother..._

"Oh yes, I am quite similar to your mother."

 _Can he read my mind?_

"Yes. But, Eleanor, we must not fraternize. Benny...he has acquired the medallion, and this may be risky. For all of us."

"And what about it?" Eleanor asked, crossing her arms. She regarded Michael with suspicion. If he could truly read her mind, and knew many things about her, it was plainly obvious he was not an ordinary person. The scent of roses in him...

"The medallion is no simple trinket, Ms. Lamb. Hidden inside, it contains a singularity of the activity of a Lutece Device."

"So...in other words, the medallion is capable of space-time quantum fluctuations," Eleanor commented, intrigued. _Why didn't the Luteces tell me?_

"Oh, don't worry, Eleanor. The Luteces did not tell you, but...they are dealt with. I made sure of that. They cannot escape this time," Michael said, then looked at Zachary, and Zachary at he. "I did what...Mr. Comstock...could not: contain the Luteces," he continued, Zachary's eyebrows furrowing. Michael looked back at Eleanor, "They came to me, seeking further experimentation, but...they will trouble us no more. They seem to have mistaken me for someone else, someone they wished to avoid yet work with."

"What did you do to them?" Eleanor inquired, concerned of the Luteces' safety.

"Oh, they are unharmed, little one. They are more valuable alive and healthy than dead."

"Good. How do we find Benny?"

"You won't find him, you will stumble upon him. No matter what you do, no matter where you go, it will happen."

"And why is that?" Zachary asked.

"Because there is no other possibility, Mr. Comstock. I simply had to keep my end of the bargain for the Pinkerton's," Michael replied, and then Zachary suddenly grabbed the priest's shirt and pulled him up close.

"You are the reason they're after me!" Zachary yelled, his accusation groundless, but he was convinced. "And her!" he continued, gesturing his head to Eleanor. Zachary pulled out his revolver and pointed the barrel into Michael's head. "You better tell me everything you know, idiot priest, before I blow your fucking brains all over that goddamned altar!"

Eleanor did not expect such an impulsive reaction, and she turned her head to see how the congregation reacted. Oddly enough, the robed people made no reaction, continuing praying as if nothing happened. Mother seemed focused, yet patient, and did nothing.

"Hold, Zachary. I am not your enemy. You are only half right. I am not the primary reason the Pinkerton's are after you, or Eleanor. I only made a means to an end, and did what I had to do to survive," Michael explained. Zachary shook the priest from anger.

"That's it?" he shouted, but calmed down, exhaling and letting his head drop. "Explain."

"Indeed, Mr. Comstock. But you yourself have not been honest with Eleanor, have you? Do you think she would ever believe..." Michael said, then looked at Eleanor, "that you are, in fact, a man from the past? A man who does not belong in this space-time? A man destined to rule a city flying in the sky. A man who...falls into regret and despair, no matter where he goes..."

Zachary quickly lifted his head, a mix of fear and surprise on his face. Horrible memories returned, rushing into his mind like painful whiteness. He felt as though he thought with the minds of millions of men at the same time, relieving so many lives, having so many contradictory memories...

 _You're hurting her! Let her go! Let, her, go!_

 _Shut it down, shut down the machine!_

 _Pull!_

 _Pull her through!_

 _Hurry!_

 _She's not through!_

 _Go!_

The child's head...

 _I remember... all of it... that poor child..._

 _And when the guilt... was too much..._

 _You turned to us to solve your problem..._

 _To provide a place to go where you might forget..._

 _Where there never was an Anna in the first place..._

 _Never comfortable with the choices he made..._

 _Always seeking to claim someone else's life to claim as his own..._

 _I'm so sorry..._

 _No you're not. But you're about to be._

Zachary's heart missed a few beats as that deep, bellowing groan resonated in his skull. His breathing slowed and weakened, the painful memories drilling into his bones and guts. The scars in his chest grinded with pain, and after ten long years... This was too much for him. He let go of Michael, feeling like discarded waste.

"I wonder who had it worse...the one who had the little head, or the one who had the small, headless body. Well, at least one did not have to witness her lifeless face, frozen with terror, only wishing she could clutch her father's hand..." Michael spoke slowly, leaning forwards a bit.

Zachary's eyes became shiny, his face empty, almost petrified. Nevertheless, his left hand still clutched Michael's front. Zachary was not always one who could control his hands.

"I think, actually, that the one who had the headless body, in fact, was driven to suicide... The young lady in blue, she was quite defeated. She grew old in her agonizing and humiliating imprisonment, and, broken by time, she brought down the mountains of men...but she learned much from her pain... Oh well, _cineri gloria sera est._ " Michael continued, gradually straightening his back.

Eleanor did not know what to do. She did not know anything about Zachary's little accident so long ago, but she had a feeling he was surprised by Michael's apparent omnipotence. Mother, on the other hand, remained composed. Was she enjoying all of this?

"And then prattled along one curious Little Sister, like a little rabbit, she the only girl with unique Plasmids. She smelled the ADAM in your corpse, and, in her excitement, inadvertently reconstituted your dead cells. And, just like Spirry, who could see behind all the doors, some of his power went into you, and you, too, could see behind some of the doors... Especially the doors of Comstock...his memories, his drives, his extradimensional equivalents..." Michael explained mysteriously, then looked at Eleanor, "That Little Sister...she had some of Spirry's Plasmids. He used her as a means into Rapture, to recollect his seeds...Seeds that not even a prophet could dream of."

Zachary's shoulders dropped. Eleanor felt pain in her head, hearing a strange, echoing, static and tuning sounds, her eye and eye socket emanating with yellow. She turned her head, and saw that Zachary's eyes also lit up with yellow. He winced from pain, and within two seconds, the strange sounds and yellow light faded away.

"Mr. Comstock, Eleanor...your noses are bleeding," Michael commented, the two touching their noses at the same time, blood on their fingers. "Now, Mr. Comstock, is your circle unbroken yet?"

Zachary's despair converted to anger, and he pistol-whipped Michael in the face. The priest leaned from the blow, blood trickling out his face, dripping onto his beard, robe, and floor. Exhaling through clenched teeth, Zachary angrily grabbed Michael's hood and pulled it off, then lightly gasped.

Eleanor and her mother slightly grimaced at what they saw. What startled the three, was Michael's eyes. Or, more specifically, the lack thereof. Michael's eye sockets were empty, dried blood caked around the holes. Curiously enough, the back of his empty eye sockets faintly glowed red, and the smell of roses became strong.

Zachary's mood suddenly transformed to anger again. He grabbed the priest by the collar and yanked him forward. Zachary pulled his gun's hammer back, then rammed the barrel in Michael's forehead.

"Listen here, freak...what happened to Ellie!? What happened to the Little Sister who brought me back!? _WHERE IS SHE!?_ " Zachary screamed, spit flying out his mouth, and the veins at his temples throbbing. "You better tell me everything, or I'll put another fuckin' hole in your head!"

Sofia softly gently placed her hand on Zachary's shoulder, calming him down.

"Easy, Zachary," she whispered, "you don't need to kill him, at least not yet." Zachary turned his head, and he exhaled slowly. Sofia then stepped beside the two men, both of them looking at her, and she slightly lowered her chin, tilted her head, and narrowed her eyes. "We should give Michael a choice. Michael, tell us everything we need to know, and live. Or, refuse our inquiries, and die."

Eleanor just watched with indifference with her one eye. Was this it? All of this trouble and suffering, just to meet some weirdo who spoke in riddles? Her mood was nothing short of disappointed. She didn't even care if Zachary killed Michael or not.

Eleanor occasionally looked back at the pews, yet the robed people just prayed away, or at least that's what they seemed to be doing. The cathedral doors were still open, and a middle-aged woman entered, but upon seeing a man with a gun, she turned around and quickly took her leave.

Michael silently and eyelessly stared back at Zachary. The priest cocked his head, and grinned. Blood leaked down his face and entered his mouth, staining his teeth red.

" _Deus est qui regit omnia._ So, there is a way to begin again, _Booker_..." Michael said, not answering Zachary's question, Zachary's face stiffening, "Without going back. Without making any more mistakes. Without sin or redemption. Without loss or gain. Without creating or ending a world. The synchrony of all realities... _Convergence_."

"Alright, I get it, you know everything...just tell me what I have to do," Zachary said calmly, but he still kept his revolver in Michael's face. Michael gestured his head at Eleanor's direction.

"Be like her. Become a Utopian. Forgive yourself, forgive Zachary, forgive Booker. Can you forgive? Can you let go?" Michael implored, placing one hand over his heart, and his other hand on Zachary's shoulder.

Zachary thought for a few seconds.

"No. I won't forgive or let go. You don't tell me what to do, pal."

"Time is wasting, and you have only one life to live. Do you wish to forgive your past? Do you wish to forgive yourself of your sins? Do you wish to begin again?" Michael questioned, leaning into Zachary, the two face-to-face, blue eyes meeting empty eyes.

"You've already made up your mind, didn't you?" Sofia commented, Eleanor now paying close attention to Zachary.

"Do you wish to begin again?" Michael asked.

"No," Zachary answered.

"Do you forgive yourself of your sins?"

"No."

"Do you forgive your wickedness?"

"No..."

"Do you wish to forgive yourself of your past, and begin again in the eyes of God?"

"No."

" _Salus per Christum Redemptorem?"_

"Wh-what? No!"

" _Si Deus nobiscum, quis contra nos? Deo adjuvante non timendum._ "

"Listen pal, English only. Time's wasting. What are you, trying to be my friend or something'?"

" _Amicus usque ad aras..._ " Michael replied in a more sinister tone than usual.

Zachary felt Michael's hand heating up, then everything in his vision seemed to be blurring. The sounds of tuning and static returned, this time quite severe, Zachary feeling blood oozing out his nose and mouse. The pain burned his brains, but it was nothing he could not handle.

"W-Wait, stop it... What did you do to me? Just, just get off! Don't touch me!" Zachary complained, ripping Michael's arm off him and walking away, putting his free hand on his forehead, his eyes and mouth beaming yellow lights. His vision continued worsening, until everything was just static blurriness.

"Zachary, do you wish to forgive?" Michael demanded, walking after the debilitated Zachary and placing a hand on his head. Zachary felt a sudden weakness, shoulders drooping, and then all his veins glowed yellow. "You cannot forgive, you cannot show mercy. You are not the Lord. So I will show you, and I will for-"

Zachary shot Michael in the head, gunshot echoing powerfully.

"Fuck your forgiveness."


	21. Chapter 21 - A Great Mass of Death

Spitting out half a mouthful of blood, Zachary rubbed his forehead as the otherworldly effects began to wear off. His vision partly returned to normal, and he realized a fight had erupted a while ago, but the images were blurry.

Eleanor was still under the effects, her eyes beaming yellow, blood leaking out her mouth and nose, and the sharp static and tuning noises almost echoing. Nevertheless, she threw punches, knee strikes and headbutts at her attackers: the robed people, some of whom were armed with swords! Eleanor did what she could, rolling her shoulders to evade the incoming swords, but the blades hit her on the head and arms, cutting her open, but she held firm.

Nearby, Sofia (who clearly was not a fighter) relied on angry pawing and clawing while wincing against a robed man whose arms and legs had...greatly elongated? Zachary immediately rushed forth, firing his revolver at point-blank into her attacker. To his surprise, the robed man made a high-pitched growl, but nonetheless flopped over and began writhing and kicking on the floor like a crazed animal.

Pulling Sofia close to him, Zachary aimed across the aisle and fired at Eleanor's attackers, gunfire echoing like crazy indoors, shooting two robed ones down before his revolver emptied all its chambers. Eleanor skipped away from her remaining attackers, holding her head.

Zachary rushed forth to help Eleanor. He swung his revolver to knock aside an incoming sword, then pistol-whipped the fanatic in the head, staggering him. Zachary then push kicked the fanatic's knee, hearing it crack, but he gripped his sword regardless. Zachary then pointed his gun forth, and the robed swordsmen stopped; they did not realize he was out of bullets!

"One step closer, and you're done," Zachary warned. The trick worked, for now, but the robed swordsmen remained en garde.

Suddenly, all remaining robed people amongst the pews grasped them, and began shaking violently, groaning lightly as blood poured out the opening of their hoods. One by one, they experienced a metamorphosis. Their arms and legs made popping, cracking and squishy noises, and elongated. Their limbs extended until the skin split, their muscles and tendons stretched, and they inhaled as if howling, blood spraying out their mouths. Once the transformation was complete, each robed person crawled along the tops of the pews like spiders.

"Huh...they are faster than Spider Splicers..." Sofia whispered to herself.

Eleanor suffered by her strange effects, too debilitated to do anything for now.

"Aww, shit! What the fuck is going on here!" Zachary cussed at everything happening, looking around as several unchanged robed swordsmen walked towards him, the croaking of crows sounding.

Black streaks flowed through the air, accompanied by ghostly crows, distracting Zachary. The robed swordsmen suddenly rushed forth, their crows cawing and swarming the three. Sofia squealed, she and Zachary swiping at the annoying birds as they violently pecked them, Eleanor covering her head.

"Murder of Crows..." Zachary mumbled as he reloaded his revolver and thrashed his shoulders against the crows.

Eleanor shook her head, her terrible side-effects wearing off. She spat a mouthful of blood out, then immediately presented her palm and released a powerful telekinetic wave just as the robed swordsmen were about to bring their blades upon them. The Plasmid hurled them off their feet, and with such force that they dropped their swords and their hoods fell back. A second upward wave blasted the crows away, reducing them into darkness and then nothingness.

Turning to face the pews, Eleanor raised both palms, one hand blasting an electrobolt, the other a psychokinetic burst. One of the elongated fellows was struck by electricity, and shook wildly while screeching, whilst a few others were blown back by Eleanor's telekinesis.

Without waiting, Eleanor used her psychokinesis to pull a few swords to herself, catching one midair, then letting two levitate next to her. Once he finished reloading his gun, Zachary tossed his revolver into his left hand, then took one of the levitating swords, as did Mother.

The presence of a sword reminded Zachary of his old M1860, a light cavalry sabre the 7th Cavalry had, based on a French design. However, this sword he just acquired was no sabre, but an arming sword.

"Eh, it'll do..." Zachary commented.

The three noticed that the fanatics Eleanor had hurled away picked themselves up, hoodless faces revealed. That is, the lack thereof. The robed people did not have faces. They were absent of noses, cheeks, lips, skin, and eyelids. Their never-blinking eyes gazed with relentlessness, visible teeth constantly gnashing.

"Mortification, self-mutilation..." Sofia remarked.

"Euhhh...reminds me of when I scalped those Indians," Zachary commented, Eleanor giving him a weird look.

Eleanor, Zachary and Sofia then looked at the pews, the spidery fanatics incoming. But then, all the fanatics paused what they were doing, and lifted their heads.

Zachary and his two friends turned to face the altar. The idiot priest was still lying on his back after being shot in the head, but then he sat up. Blood leaking down the bullet hole in his forehead, Michael picked himself up, eyeless face bloodied. Zachary's lips parted, eyebrows furrowing, eyes narrowing.

"Back from the dead?" Sofia asked nonchalantly, Michael simply spreading his arms and portraying his pierced palms.

" _Natus in morte..._ " Father Atar remarked.

"If he's back from the dead, he won't be for long," Zachary assured, pulling his hammer back.

Michael cackled, laughter echoing up the cathedral. He then gripped his hands, red swirling auras forming around them, and then he conjured two rippling masses of some sort.

"Like Elizabeth's Tears..." Zachary remarked.

" _Ad mortem!_ " Michael exclaimed, and then from each Tear poured forth a dozen or so fanatics, charging single file with their swords. Zachary fired at the line to his left, his Smith & Wesson Model 29-2 projecting a single bullet straight through several fanatics, all of them hitting the floor.

Eleanor hurled explosive fireballs, feeling the heat as several charging fanatics flew into the air ablaze and growling. She spun around and waved psychokinetic power upon several spidery fanatics who just leapt into the air, blasting them backwards while Zachary fired at the swordsmen.

"Come here, I'll show you why I am the White Injun of the 7th Cavalry!" he encouraged, stepping in front of Sofia to shield her.

Zachary engaged with the robed swordsmen, some of them on fire, swinging his sword rapidly at them. He repeatedly swung his sword into their swings, essentially cutting into their cuts, as well as using his revolver as a parrying device, as there was no other way to defend against multiple swords. Their attacks hacked apart his shields.

Upon intercepting an incoming sword, Zachary then would snap his blade down into his foe's forearm, head, shoulder, or collarbone, whilst firing his revolver at point-blank range or casting Shock Jockey through either clench hand. He often either cut hands off or chopped skulls open or shot fanatics dead, but received several cuts as well, narrowly avoiding serious injury. He cast Old Man Winter, freezing a fanatic and using him as a frozen human shield until hacked apart by fanatical attacks.

Zachary fought with greater skill, precision, quickness and ferocity than the fanatics. He was a blender, attacking and parrying in all directions, in constant motion with his sword, and using Shock Jockey or Old Man Winter. Once things got face-to-face, he would club with his gun, headbutt, knee strike, and punch with the hilt or pommel of his sword. Both sides of his sword were nicked and chipped from overuse against other swords and cutting through bone.

Sofia mostly kept defensive, hiding behind Zachary and hoping not to get hurt. Occasionally she managed to swing her sword here and there, but did little, and Zachary always protected her. A man who protects the woman he loves fights like a devil possessed, after all. His adrenaline was pumping so much he did not even feel pain in his many flesh wounds, shields unable to regenerate due to constant attacks.

The fanatics relentlessly assaulted him, more and more pouring out Michael's Tears, and more and more piling dead around Zachary. Nearly overwhelmed by sheer numbers, Zachary cast Bucking Bronco, but the fanatics continued swinging their swords even when floating! He did them a favour and threw a charged Shock Jockey, which formed an electrical field that shocked all the floating fanatics and many others around him and Sofia. He and Sofia took the advantage and chopped into the electrocuting fanatics in the air and on the floor, but Zachary did most of the butchery. He formed a mound of dead and dying fanatics and severed limbs and heads, forcing reinforcements to either climb over them or dismantle the piles.

Father Atar stood where he was, arms spread apart, grinning as blood leaked down his face and beard. Was he enjoying all of this? He simply observed, for now.

The Murder of Crows came back, feathery bastards flapping about and harassing Zachary, interrupting his epic moment. One crow pecked him in the eye, so he bit its head and chewed it off, then spat the damn thing out. He wanted to cast another round of Plasmids, but was out of EVE, for now. He would need to wait a while before it recharged.

While Zachary and Sofia engaged with the fanatics and supernatural crows, Eleanor had charged forth to face the spidery ones, hearing them breathing like mad dogs. Just as one of them jumped at Eleanor, she leapt and dropkicked him, knocking him away. A second crawled at her, intending to grab her legs and bite her belly, so she simply swung her sword like a golf club, lopped an arm, then chopped her blade down onto the head, dividing it asunder.

"Stand in our way, and you'll get what's coming to you!" Eleanor warned, and she blasted an electrobolt at another, stunning her and then promptly decapitating her. She then lifted another with her telekinesis and slammed its back against the pews, wood, as well as bone, cracking aloud. "Alright, who's next?"

Several spidery fanatics reached Eleanor and swiped their immense arms at her. She skipped out of the way with the reflexes of a ferret, hopping onto one of the pews, which gave her a slight height advantage and the other pews served as obstacles.

The spidery fanatics already crawling along the pews darted for Eleanor, one leaping at her and extending his arms and legs. Eleanor immediately swung her sword in a sideways arc, cutting the monster's arms off at the elbow, then skipped over the next pew and drove her sword clean through another spider's face. She heard him repeatedly biting the blade, clawing at her, but she just bit onto a hand and chewed, crushing the knuckles and tendons with her teeth. A thrust through the beast's heart caused it to writhe and screech. She lifted him up, then threw him off her blade.

Eleanor kept a defensive position, chopping into the hands and arms of beasts crawling to her, and using Plasmids to keep others at bay. One of the monsters leapt upon her, but she caught her with a telekinetic barrier, levitating her in place.

"You can only die once, but I'll make yours fun," Eleanor remarked, then she slashed the monster's arms off, then deactivated her Plasmid.

The monster landed on her feet, without arms. She looked around, and then ran away. Eleanor threw her sword, and used her telekinesis to empower it like a boomerang, and it spun after the fleeing monster, cutting her head off.

"Aww, you were doing so well, too..." Eleanor commented. Her sword continued spinning through the air, empowered by more and more psychokinesis, and blended across several more monsters. Once the blade lost telekinetic empowerment, it returned to Eleanor's hand.

"Yes, I'm...quite disappointed. Bored, actually. Come back with more friends," Eleanor remarked, twirling her sword in her hand playfully. She then looked up. Several Tears had formed along the ceiling some time ago, and emerging were dozens of spider fanatics, crawling like ants down the ceiling, stained glass windows, arches, and pillars.

"Yes! Make it last! I can sure smell the roses now!" Eleanor exclaimed, then began unleashing large explosive fireballs at the horde of enemies. Flames bounced off the architecture and rained down with blazing monsters, growling from pain.

Overwhelmed by flame, some monsters smashed through the stained glass windows and crawled outside. Eleanor noticed.

"Make up your minds," she commented, then one of the spider fanatics grabbed her legs and bit her side. "Ow!" She simply teleported away. Eleanor quickly reappeared above the monster that bit her. As she fell, she drove her sword into its head, splitting it asunder down to the chest, the halves flopping over either shoulder.

Meanwhile, Just as it would seem Zachary and Sofia would be swarmed and chopped to pieces, Zachary quickly swung his revolver downward, hurling a glowing green mass to the floor.

Sofia ducked and covered her head, dropping her sword, awaiting her end. But her end did not come. When she took her hands off her head, she looked up, seeing glowing green swirling all around her. The fanatics surrounding her had green auras, and the seemed confused. After a second, they all turned around and charged the various spider fanatics dropping from above! Some also attacked newly arriving robed swordsmen rushing out Michael's Tears.

"Get up! Let's go!" Zachary yelled, Sofia grabbing her sword and running off with Zachary down the aisle. As they ran, Zachary emptied his revolver into a few spider fanatics, and chopped into the fingers and hands of those clawing at him and clubbed them with his revolver, allowing Sofia to hit them on the head to injure them further. "Cut their fingers off! They have no way to defend their hands!" Zachary yelled as he cut a spider fanatic's hand off, and Sofia did likewise to the beasts pawing at her.

Zachary felt one of the beast's grab his arm and paw his head, staggering him. Sofia chopped into the monster's arm and it let go, and she and Zachary thrust their swords into the monster's face and it backed off. Another spider fanatic grabbed Sofia by the leg, and Zachary skipped forth and swung his sword into the monster's mouth. The blade chopped through the monster's front teeth and passed through the neck, removing the top half of skull off the jawbone, teeth and tongue visible.

Some of the Possessed robed swordsmen charged down the aisle and engaged with more spider fanatics, creating a clearing, but the effect would soon wear off. A portion attempted to fight Michael, but his reinforcements kept them at bay.

Eleanor was quite busy launching fiery projectiles, so much so, flames grew all around the cathedral. The cathedral was made of stone, and could not burn very well, but Eleanor's Plasmids gradually formed an inferno up on the ceiling. The chandeliers caught fire, then the pews as flaming bodies fell on them. As more spider fanatics emerged from the Tears, they simply crawled into the inferno and fell ablaze, thrashing as they fell.

" _Eleanor!_ " Zachary yelled, getting her attention, and then aggressively pointing at the exit.

Eleanor nodded, then skipped to the side to avoid a falling spider fanatic on fire, then spun around to look at Michael. She then looked back at Zachary.

"Go on without me!" Eleanor yelled back, Zachary nodding. He and Mother continued fighting their way down the aisle as smoke and flames grew all around them. "I'm too busy having fun. Oh, what's that, dear Papa? Teach them about fire? I'll bring them fire, alright..."

Once Sofia and Zachary reached the exit, they were met by several police officers, pistols in hand, wondering what the hell was happening! They escorted them out, firing at charging swordsmen and spidery fanatics.

"What the hell are those things!" one of the coppers shouted.

"Don't ask, let's just get the hell out of here!" Zachary replied, looking down the aisle. "Eleanor! Get out of there!" he shouted, but could not see Eleanor through the smoke.

Eleanor had teleported to Michael amidst the Possessed fanatics fighting the unchanged ones, flames gradually growing and surrounding them. The priest's eyeless face seemed to be staring at her, smoke and flames growing behind him.

Raising her sword, Eleanor swung it down upon Michael. He suddenly clapped his hands upon her blade, clamping it with such strength he stopped its path. Eleanor's big eyes went bigger, and then Michael yanked his arms, throwing Eleanor's sword away. He then punched Eleanor in her big forehead, Eleanor narrowing her eyes and wincing from pain as she felt herself bend backwards.

"Ow..." Eleanor mumbled.

The priest conjured a fiery Plasmid and hurled it. Eleanor ducked under the Plasmid and dove, kneeing the priest in the crotch, and he bent over from pain. Eleanor then headbutted him, and then sent an uppercut into his chin, impact hurling the priest off his feet as he crashed onto his back. She then stomped her heel into his sternum, Michael sitting up with blood spurting out his mouth. Eleanor then kicked him across the jaw, hearing it crack, but the priest remained sitting up.

"I can see you trying not to cry!" Eleanor teased, and then a spider fanatic grabbed Eleanor from behind, wrapping his arms around her and biting the back of her neck. Eleanor exclaimed in pain, Michael getting up while grabbing a sword from the floor. He approached Eleanor, preparing a mighty swing. On the last moment, Eleanor teleported out of the way, and Michael beheaded the beast that was holding her.

Father Atar looked around, wondering where Eleanor went. She reappeared above him, slamming both feet into his head, pinning him to the floor. Eleanor looked side to side. She realized that the unchanged robed swordsmen finished off the Possessed ones, and they and several spider fanatics just surrounded her and leapt at her!

Eleanor quickly amassed psychokinesis, forming an antigravitational sphere and slamming it down to the floor, causing it to erupt with great force, hurling all the fanatics and a dozen nearby corpses away from her. Michael received the brunt of the force, which drove him deeper into the floor, breaking tiles.

Eleanor used her psychokinesis to levitate heads Zachary removed as well as fallen swords, and used them as projectiles against her many foes pouring out the Tears. The swords cut and stabbed into fanatics, heads thudded against them, and Eleanor cast fiery Plasmids at her foes. Nevertheless, the enemy just kept coming, and Eleanor knew this was not a fight she could win, already panting from overexertion of Plasmids and physicality.

"I wanted to kill the ugly one, but I suppose playtime's over," Eleanor remarked as she looked down on Michael. She then hurled multiple explosive fireballs akin to Big Sister's Plasmids in all directions, causing a fiery mess of the constant stream of incoming fanatics.

Looking down on Michael again, Eleanor could not help but say something more, "While you and your disciples burn, think of me dancing on the beach!" She hurled her last projectile upon Michael, then vanished from sight.

Eleanor reappeared down the aisle, looked toward the altar as Michael picked himself up, apparently untroubled by the flames. Eleanor had a feeling he was surprised, and the two looked at each other.

" _Obstupui, steteruntque comae, et vox faucibus haesit..._ " Michael spoke as fire burned away his hair, clothes and skin, and he was enveloped by flames.

Father Atar's hordes of swordsmen and spidery monsters ran after Eleanor. She simply gave them a little wave, and took her leave as the inferno engulfed the entirety of the cathedral interior. Michael Vay Atar's disciples would become ashes, and his Tears would close.

Eleanor dropped her sword and exited the cathedral, feeling heat and smoke flowing after her. Coughing a little, she walked onto the street, seeing cop cars everywhere, red and blue lights flashing, sirens of firetrucks wailing in the distance. Some policemen and sniper rifles, picking off spidery fanatics who escaped the cathedral. A police helicopter flew overhead as well, and news reporters were dying to get as much footage as possible.

Many cops stared at Eleanor, wondering if she was a threat or not. However, the cops did nothing, not even rush to her or ask if she needed help. In fact, the officers all looked suspicious of Eleanor.

"You missed the fun!" she chirped with a bubbly face, a few cops looking at each other. She overheard what sounded like a mob, being contained by more police officers down the street.

Eleanor walked amidst the cop cars, looking for Zachary and Mother, the cops wary of her but doing nothing. They were hesitant. Soon, Eleanor found Zachary and Mother, both on their knees, hands handcuffed behind their backs, police officers as well as Pinkerton's around them. She did not see their swords anywhere, but Zachary's revolver was confiscated.

Eleanor furrowed her eyebrows and lowered her face, making fists, and approached Mother and Zachary.

"Hey! You better let them go, or you'll have hell to pay to m-" Eleanor was interrupted when a blue Tear suddenly appeared in front of her, which she walked into.

"Eleanor!" Zachary shouted, but she had already disappeared into the Tear. " _Shhhit..._ "

"Oh look, she's gone," Sofia commented as if not caring. She and Zachary looked up, seeing a woman slowly walking to the scene, hip sway loose but elegant, one foot passing in front of the other, knee-high black leather boots knocking against the pavement.

The woman was smoking a cigarette and wore a gray suit, save she wore a skirt instead of pants. She was around the age of thirty, had medium-length, full, thick, rich, fluffy dark brown hair, and large blue eyes. Quite a petite woman, she had a gorgeous, chiselled face, and a nasty scar above the left eyebrow. The woman seemed to be a heavy smoker, as wrinkles were forming around her eyes and on the forehead, making her look older than she actually was.

"Ma'am, should you be here?" a police officer asked the woman.

Without looking at him, the little lady flashed her badge at his face. He nodded and left her alone. She walked to Zachary and stood before him, leaving her cigarette in her mouth as she exhaled.

 _Elizabeth, chi-ih-ih-ld...I am so sorry..._

 _No you're not, but you're about to be..._

He couldn't even place a hand on her shoulder. Her scowl was horrible to behold in the eyes of a dying man, all those years ago. She wanted him to suffer, to be remorseful, to feel like shit. And she succeeded, she really did. Albeit for a short while...

A few quick flashbacks raced through Zachary's mind. A decade ago, he awoke from death, and saw a child with her hands inside his sternum literally grasping his heart. That Little Sister...she brought the bitch back, too. He felt the sharp, creepy, static and tuning noises reverberate in his skull again, a little blood leaking from his nose.

 _The other one, she was brought back, too..._ Zachary tried to remember something, but could not. Vague memories, without pictures, was all he had. _Died, again...because I failed her, again... She died because of me, but also because of her..._

Zachary's head and shoulders lowered. He missed Elizabeth...the _real_ one, and she was gone for good because he screwed up down in Rapture. When he looked up, the bitch before him kept a stern face. Zachary also made a stern face.

"Miss me?" he asked with his usual monotonous voice, but this time, there was a hunt of anger.

The lady did not even blink for a couple seconds, expecting a different reaction. But she said nothing, staring down at Zachary with a focused yet angry face. She took her cigarette out, and pressed it against Zachary's left eye. He gasped through clenched teeth, closing his eyes and turning away, but the lady extinguished her cig against his eyelid anyways.

"Guess that's a yes..." Zachary remarked nonchalantly. The woman glared at him, but kept her composure.

"He's the one, but load both of them into the van," the lady said, and the Pinkerton agents grabbed Sofia and Zachary and forced them to their feet.

"You are really, _really_ short..." Sofia commented, leaning to tower over the woman. The lady did not reply, but stared back with a scowl.

The Pinkerton's dragged Zachary and Sofia like luggage, shoving them into the back of a large, bulky van. Sofia was quite angry, as if offended.

"My congregation will not sit idly by. Once they find out what happened to me, ask yourself, if-" The rear door slammed shut, cutting-off Sofia's sentence.

As the van drove off, the woman looked at the Tear, still present. She took a pack of cigarettes from her jacket.

"And who the hell were you? Michael said nothing about a girl," she said to herself, putting a fresh cigarette in her mouth and lighting it. She was missing half her left pinky. "Huh, she looked like a tall version of me, with a British accent..."


	22. Chapter 22 - Drained Memories

Greyscale, wavy noises, blurriness, gunfire, darkness, shouting, ruination, chaos... Memories of Rapture came flooding back.

 _"C'mon guys, this way!" a small Little Sister said, untroubled by the chaos around her. "This way to the ball-boat!"_

 _"Are you sure?" a boy asked aloud._

 _"Yes, Brock! Yes!" the girl guaranteed._

 _"Then hurry it up, the glass is cracking all over!" Zachary warned, occasionally firing into the darkness._

 _"Sandy! Wait!" the little girl suddenly shrieked._

 _"Ellie! No! Stay put!" Zachary screamed, but the child already ran off, bullets whizzing about. Zachary had ran after her, shooting several insurgents dead. Amidst the gunfight, some of the Splicers saw the child, and went after her, clubbing her down with their guns, then fighting one another over her._

 _Nevertheless, Zachary had charged to the crazy kid, punching and shoving the insurgents away, firing point-blank and casting electrobolts. But she was struggling against him, screaming about someone named Sandy and trying to save him._

 _"Booker! The Big Daddy!" Elizabeth yelled from somewhere. Zachary turned his head, seeing Ellie's Big Daddy on a stampede, visor red. He trampled over a dozen Splicers, giant drill roaring towards him... "Do something!" Elizabeth screamed, grabbing another Elizabeth by the shirt and shaking her. The other Elizabeth pushed her arms off angrily._

 _"I'm_ not _helping_ him _,"_

 _"Please! You have to! At least help Ellie!" the first Elizabeth pleaded, then the two ducked as bullets thudded around them. The first Elizabeth faded away and ran off invisibly, then the other used a Tear to materialize some cover of stacked crates..._

The next rush of memories was unpleasant.

 _Zachary ran down a glass passageway, firing back at his Splicer pursuers, the cracks forming in the glass chasing after him as well. A good distance behind him, some cracks broke open. Water gushed in, sweeping most of the Splicers away. Zachary quickly cast Old Man Winter, freezing the water—and those inside—in place._

 _Reaching a conjunction of which two more passages connected to this one, Zachary looked to his left, seeing one Elizabeth running towards him, glass breaking all around her. He looked to the right, seeing another Elizabeth running towards him, glass breaking all around her. Time seemed to have slowed down back then._

 _Zachary did the only thing he could. He unleashed Old Man Winter overhead an Elizabeth, to freeze the water and seal the shattering glass. His attempts partly worked, this Elizabeth receiving a wave of water in the back and throwing her down, but the icebound glass held enough._

 _Turning around, Zachary saw the other Elizabeth, extending her left arm as she ran seemingly in slow-motion, eyes big, lips parted, face pleading. Water and glass exploded all around her. Zachary immediately cast his freezing Plasmid, sealing the rupture with ice. Elizabeth was nowhere to be found._

 _"Elizabeth!" Zachary shouted, running forth to see if he had frozen her as well. He turned to the side and saw her. She was level to him, her left hand on the glass, eyes closed. She covered her mouth with both hands, and scrunched up._

 _"ELIZABETH!" Zachary screamed, ramming both hands against the glass. He watched as bubbles left Elizabeth's mouth, and she sunk into the darkness below. Zachary quivered, hands shaking, breathing lightly. "Elizabeth..."_

"Oo-wah!" Zachary awoke, shaking his head. He sat in a chair, arms tied behind it, blood leaking down his face. He was in a dark room, a single light directly above him from the ceiling. He groaned, spitting blood out his mouth, vision coming back together.

"You're only making this harder on yourself... _Comstock_ ," Elizabeth remarked spitefully. She was leaning against the wall, smoking, and observing, like a snake. Zachary's face was busted open, eyebrows, cheekbones, and lips split and swollen.

Three Pinkerton agents stood in front of Zachary, one with his arms crossed but holding a pistol. The second had bloodied fists. The third held an Uzi, probably just in case Zachary used Plasmids.

"Hunh? What?" Zachary asked, his face hurting so much he felt numbness. "Sofia...where's Sofia? And where did you send Eleanor?" he demanded. He wanted to burst out his bonds, throw Plasmids at the agents, but he felt horrible.

Elizabeth did not reply to Zachary's question, just breathing in her cig.

"Answer me!" he yelled angrily, jerking his shoulders forth, but he remained bound.

"Give him a few more," Elizabeth instructed quietly, then sucked in a mouthful of smoky goodness, the nicotine flushing her taste buds.

The agent with bloodied fists punched Zachary in the chin. The hot, cracking pain burst throughout Zachary's mouth and jawbone. An uppercut to the sternum caused him to groan. Two more punches to the forehead dazed him. His head dropped, forehead busted open and leaking blood down to his lap.

"Eh-Elizabeth...what do you want from me?" Zachary asked softly, noticing a glowing green curve in Elizabeth's eyes, but it quickly disappeared.

"Answers."

"I thought you already knew everything?"

"I... Right now, I can't see behind any of the doors. This is happening more and more often. I told you about it in Rapture, remember? You must have remade the Siphon."

"Aw, jeez, Elizabeth...no, I didn't. Columbia doesn't even exist here, does it? There is no Siphon. Why didn't you just talk to the Luteces?"

"I did! And they're useless, as usual. But settled down pretty good, Michael made sure of that. Yet, I still have my problem."

"Well, I can't help you."

"Then let's start over. First, who was that girl?"

"Huh? Who?"

"The tall girl who looked like me. Dark hair, big blue eyes."

Zachary gave Elizabeth a weird look. The Pinkerton's looked at Elizabeth as well.

"You mean Eleanor? _You're_ the one who captured me, then forced me to kidnap her for the Pinkerton's." Zachary replied. "Well, tried to...Benny beat me to her, even after I took out two dozen of his leathery pals..." he quietly mumbled to himself.

Elizabeth sighed, shaking her head.

"Now you're just being cynical."

"Uhh...no, I'm not. Ten years after leaving Rapture, you found me. Forced me to work for the Pinkerton's, to kidnap another girl. Must have been your idea of a cruel joke to get back at me," Zachary explained, but Elizabeth was unconvinced.

"Ma'am, that's what happened. You got us to capture our former agent, who was Booker DeWitt, but is now Zachary Hale Comstock. Just as you said...well, seems like he would have been one of the very few who could bring Eleanor Lamb in," one of the Pinkerton's said. Elizabeth looked at him with a mix of surprise and irritation. She then looked down, focused, yet confused. She heard heavy, echoing static and tuning inside her skull for a couple seconds.

"Elizabeth, you're bleeding..." Zachary said, Elizabeth touching her nose and seeing blood on her fingers. "Sounds like you're getting mixed up with your memories," Zachary remarked. Elizabeth glared at him. "Look, if you wanted to know more about Eleanor, maybe don't send her to another world next time," Zachary suggested with some heat. _God,_ _I hope she's okay..._

"I couldn't take the risk. She's a danger to society."

"That don't mean you can just throw people into other worlds... Or work with fools who can transform human beings into monsters. I can barely believe you joined the Pinkerton's, let alone co-operated with that sicko, that Michael guy."

"And look who _you_ worked with to create monsters," Elizabeth spat.

"Listen, child, we don't have to go through all this. I never wanted you to be like me. You just don't understand... I'm sorry it had to happen, but...please, j-just listen to me. You're not a parent, you don't know how it is. Imagine yourself as a mother, then you would know how it is," he continued softly.

Elizabeth angrily inhaled, cigarette burning away. Zachary was surprised she wasn't coughing from all that smoking. She walked to him, the agents stepping aside.

"I _know_ what I'm doing, _Comstock_ ," she assured rudely, gesticulating with her arms like she did down in Rapture while smoke flowed out her mouth.

Zachary leaned over to spit some accumulated blood out. He looked up, Elizabeth taking another go at her cigarette, already done over half of it. She sure liked her nicotine.

"Either that, or you're losing your mind," Zachary commented. "What else have you been smoking?"

Elizabeth's eyes and face widened, like how a cat's face widens when angry. She suddenly slapped Zachary, impact smearing blood across his face. She just stood there, leaning forwards, breathing through clenched teeth while the veins at her temples bulged.

"You've changed quite a bit, child. And for the worst," Zachary commented. "It hurts to see it happen."

Elizabeth just took out her cigarette and huffed out a mouthful of smoke. Zachary expected to get his eye burned again, but to his surprise, Elizabeth suddenly withdrew a silver revolver with a large, tall barrel. At either side of the barrel were engravings of wavy, swirling patterns around a reclining woman. It had a rosewood grip sandwiching into a steel centre, the trigger brass, and iron sights pronounced. She stuck the beefy revolver into Zachary's temple.

"If you want to kill me, go on ahead. It'll make everything easier for both of us," Zachary said nonchalantly, keeping eye contact with the woman who was and was not the daughter he always wanted. He heard Elizabeth's finger curl around the trigger, hammer pulling back only slightly. She then let her arm drop.

"Outright _killing_ you..." Elizabeth hissed, teeth gritted and eyes fierce, "is _too_ nice," she continued, then spoiled herself with her cigarette. She seemed to calm down, taking a breath. The nicotine was finally doing its magic.

"You're gonna need another smoke pretty soon," Zachary commented.

"I _know._ I'm not a kid," Elizabeth almost whined. She holstered her big revolver, then dropped her cigarette, crushing it underfoot. Taking out a pack of cigs, she took out her next cigarette. Just as it seemed she would put it between her lips, she paused. She just thought to herself for a couple seconds, reflecting about past memories.

"Untie him," she instructed. The three Pinkerton's looked at her weird. "I said untie him."

The one with bloody fists nodded, and untied Zachary. Comstock sighed with relief, getting his stiff and sore arms in front of him, curling his fingers. When he looked up, he saw Elizabeth offer him her cigarette. Another pause. Elizabeth briefly and slightly lifted her chin, gesturing him. Zachary accepted the cig, slowly, and then Elizabeth got a cig for herself, putting the pack away. Before he could ask, Elizabeth flicked a lighter on and lit his cigarette.

"For old time's sake...Booker," she remarked gently yet was stone-faced, then lit her own smoke.

 _I think she calmed down, good..._ Zachary thought to himself. Elizabeth took a slow drink of smoke.

"You've changed, too," Elizabeth remarked, "I was expecting more grovelling. Are you still mad at me? Do you still wished you saved the other me?"

That question hit Zachary hard in the heart. He bought some time by breathing in some burning nicotine.

"Huh, well... You tried to save her, too. Watching her just...drown...that was as bad as watching Sally burn," Zachary replied, dodging the question. When he said Sally, memories and sadness came to them.

"Sally, she's... She's doing alright," Elizabeth said, and most of the anger built up in her dissipated. Zachary, suddenly curious and worried about Sally, stood up, the Pinkerton with the Uzi aiming it at him.

"Where is she? What happened to her?" Zachary asked. Elizabeth looked up at him.

"I think she lives up north with relatives. Don't know exactly where, though."

"Mm. Thanks for telling me. Where's Sofia?"

"She's okay, being questioned in a...more civil manner," Elizabeth replied, then felt a little guilty. Her eyes and shoulders went low. For the first time in over a decade, Zachary beheld her soften up. "Are...are you really sorry?" Elizabeth asked, looking like a completely different person.

"I am," Zachary admitted, "for everything I've done to you. Give a man a little power, he falls in all kinds of love with himself, even a father. But a father wants the best for his child, no matter how much he screws up. Just imagine yourself as a mother. What would you do for your child? You would do anything and everything, even if it kills you. Even if you lose your mind over it."

Elizabeth kept her head and shoulders low. She looked so tired, so much older, so sick of everything, in that pose. She left her cig burning between her fingers, lost in her thoughts.

Zachary hated seeing Elizabeth like that. Even after so much conflict and stress, she was still a daughter to him, one way or another, and he wanted her to be happy.

"Elizabeth, please don't be like that. I would do anything and everything for you, even if it means working for you under the Pinkerton's. You knew that, it's why you didn't have me killed." Zachary lifted his arm, wanting to place his hand on Elizabeth's shoulder. Just like a decade ago, she straightened herself up with a glare. Zachary stopped his hand, pulling it back a bit.

"You did _nothing_ for me, _Comstock._ I...I _hate_ you. Every time I _think_ about you...your name, your face...your racism, your life...my life...and everything else..." Elizabeth said while gesticulating, but sometimes shaking from anger. The veins in her temples bulged again, and she had to hold her oversized head.

 _Well, that was short-lived... Her anger problems are really getting in her way._

"So you won't let go, hunh?" Zachary asked calmly. "So it's just your turn to be like Comstock, to become what you hate. Don't let it bite you in the ass later on."

"I'm... _not..._ like you." Elizabeth's rage paused on her face, veins reddening. "It would have been better if you never even existed. And I thought I succeeded in that after Columbia."

"Just because you uprooted a tree, does not mean you killed its seeds," a new voice spoke.

Zachary, Elizabeth, and the three Pinkerton's looked to the side. Standing by the wall, arms spread but bent at the elbow, was none other than Michael himself. Despite the immolation he endured previously, he looked exactly the same as before, clothes and all, as if nothing had happened to him. His empty eye sockets and pierced hands gave him a sinister, creepy look. The scent of roses returned as well.

The Pinkerton with the pistol and the one with the Uzi aimed at Michael, rather startled.

"How did you get in here?" the Uzi-wielder demanded. Michael coolly walked to him, placing a hand on the man's shoulder.

"Elizabeth figured you could use my help on this one," Michael said, grinning. Michael then stood beside Zachary and Elizabeth, clasping his hands behind his back.

"You..." Zachary growled, not happy.

"Yes, me. Who else?" Michael said, tilting his head while smiling. He then looked at Elizabeth, his smile disappearing.

"Ah, Elizabeth, I saw that you continue to struggle. No longer can you see all the doors, and what's behind all the doors. Indeed, after much discussion with the Luteces, I have drawn a conclusion."

"Let's hear it," Elizabeth said, crossing her arms and smoking away.

"There cannot be a Siphon, at least not _per se_. But there seems to be an alternative. As you know, the United Kingdom is recreating a supercomputer, the same one that operated Rapture. Since RODIN was used to formulate Plasmids, it can formulate Tonics. The Luteces, who have incorporated The Thinker with a Lutece device, must have created a Gene Tonic via The Thinker that expressly debilitates your consciousness, and so interrupts your connection with the Tears," Michael explained. "Consider it like the transmission of radio signals disrupting frequencies, of which your mind is the targetted network. By adding new quantum information into genes and mutations that synthesize with DNA, very many new possibilities of ADAM become apparent."

"Hunh... Ever since we brought the Luteces in, I have not been able to see many doors. Just a few at best, and none right now. We'll put the Luteces through further tests, see what we can learn," Elizabeth said, then looked at Zachary sharply. "We'll perform those tests on you, too." She then looked at Michael, "Don't think you've gained my trust, Michael. You have a lot to answer for, considering what you did in the cathedral. You'll be going through testing as well, and then it's off to the holding cell for you." Elizabeth gestured to her agents to grab Michael.

" _If_...you catch me," Michael said, then stepped through a shadowy Tear that promptly closed behind him. The agents stood, dumbstruck.

"Shadow Tears... Can't see them in the dark," Elizabeth said to herself. "Well, whatever. Bring Comstock back to the labs, we have more work to do."

"Come with us, mister," the agent with the Uzi instructed, and Zachary obeyed.

 _Hunh. Maybe I can earn Elizabeth's trust sooner or later. I wonder what Eleanor's doing..._


	23. Chapter 23 - Into the Unknown

" _Aaaiiii **iiii**!_"

Eleanor plummeted from blackness, arms flailing, legs striding, eyes big, hair whipping backwards. Far, far below her appeared to be snow-white rolling mountain ranges amidst lakes. Or so she thought. She could clearly see blackness off to the sides, as well as the extremely bright sun floating in the blackness over yonder. Therefore, thousands of feet below her, were clouds amidst the blueness of a sky. The mountain ranges would be below the rolling clouds, though Eleanor could see sunlight reflecting from oceans.

Although she could not breathe at an altitude of well over a hundred and sixty thousand feet, her slug kept her alive. She felt her skin and flesh swelling, bulging from such pressure, but yet again, her little slimy friend attached to her stomach stabilized her body. Nevertheless, Eleanor was in quite a lot of pain, feeling as though her bones and muscles wanted to burst through her skin. It was like having bad period cramps, but everywhere.

Falling from the mesosphere would take quite a while. After Eleanor exhausted her lungs of air from her scream, well, she still had at least four minutes of freefalling before reaching the ground. Every breath she took was nothing but feeling her blood rushing upwards, the pain of pressurization of her tissue, and the total terror of suddenly being in a skydive without a parachute, was rather unpleasant.

Eventually, after a couple minutes of skydiving at over six hundred miles per hour, Eleanor reached atmosphere that had colour. She dove into the whiteness of clouds, and soon beheld mountains, jungles, rivers, lakes...

 _Hunh, that's...really beautiful, actually..._ Eleanor thought to herself, for a second forgetting about her freefall. But her skydive of horror commenced anyways. At least she could breathe again, sort of, wind feeling like it would blow her face off her skull.

As she dove, the mountains, lakes, jungles and rivers shrunk and receded into the horizon. Just a few thousand more feet to go. Eleanor then saw peculiar structures, which looked like Mesoamerican pyramids, walls, and towers, a portion of which surpassed the jungle canopies. The structures appeared to be overgrown ruins, clearly indicating Eleanor was not where she used to be.

Able to breathe and regaining her senses fully, Eleanor braced herself as she crashed through the canopy. Branches shattered, flocks of birds flew away, lizards and squirrels scurried, leaves and twigs and things rained to the ground, but Eleanor was nowhere in sight. As a few trees swayed and endless leaves shook, dark purple lights rippled. Eleanor was suddenly sitting on a branch, looking down, panting, her hair a complete mess. She looked up, seeing the hole in the canopy she made, below it a series of broken branches of gigantic trees.

 _Huh... That was quite the fall. What on earth happened..._ She dropped her head and shoulders, then put her hands on her brow. Dizziness, soreness, and swelling churned throughout her lithe but strong, long body.

" _Wooahh..._ I think I need to lie down," Eleanor mumbles, rubbing sweat off her face. It's quite hot in this place, and seems to be morning. Various jungle birds and insects chirp and sing, the birdsong echoing everywhere quite beautifully.

Turning around on her branch, Eleanor lied down on her front, resting her cheek against the bark, and lets her long arms and longer legs dangle. Quite an uncomfortable position, but she soon slept like the elongated baby that she was, lulled by birdsong and breezes.

Eleanor lied on her branch, gently snoring. With a snort, she woke up, wondering where the hell she is. The first thing she sees, directly across from her, is a black panther sleeping in the tree over yonder. The big cat yawns and stretches her legs out. When she finishes yawning, the panther stares back at Eleanor with a pair of big, circular, yellow eyes.

"Hey there, beautiful."

The two girls just stare at each other. After several seconds, the big black cat loses interest and begins licking her paw.

Eleanor sat up on her branch, hair still crazy, and looks around. She's perhaps a hundred feet from the forest floor, but feels quite safe up there. The region is quite moist and hot, clothes sticking to her sweaty skin.

" _Fffhhhnnn!_ " Eleanor scrunches up, hands on her abdomen, " _Ugh!_ Period cramps... _Ooowooo-uhhh_..."

The pain is absolutely horrible. Eleanor grimaces, lips parted, eyes shut tight, teeth clenched.

"Uhhh. I better not bleed into my new clothes, and I don't even have a tampon..."

Eleanor teleported down to the forest floor. She painfully and slowly limped around, looking for a nice spot to do her business. She hoped her impending menstruation would wait a little more. Her agonizing waddling led her into some leafy ferns, and she barely had enough time to pull her jeans and panties down to her ankles before the stream of runny blood started leaking.

Not even Plasmids could make _girl problems_ go away.

"There better not be anyone watching..." Eleanor whispered to the ferns, listening carefully, but there was just the echoing birdsong. And drizzling blood. A bathroom would have been way better, but this was all the privacy Eleanor was getting. To make things worse, flies and dumb bugs buzzed to the scene.

After a dozen leaves, Eleanor figured she was done. But, she straightened her back too quickly, and a little more blood oozed out, so she quickly ducked again with a grunt. After another dozen leaves, her bodily needs finished. Once she slid her panties and jeans over her small bum, Eleanor stepped out and looked around.

"Now, where am I, and how did I get here? Huh...like I'm ever getting an answer," Eleanor said to herself, rolling up her sleeves. "So, what have I gotten myself into this time?" She still got no answer. She sighed.

"Oh well, no point sitting and wallowing. Looks like I ended up in Latin America. I'll find civilization sooner or later..." Eleanor spoke, beginning her walk to nowhere. "I hope."

Eleanor spent the next few hours wandering forth, lost and alone, but not afraid. The jungles were thick and immense. Even grasses, flowers and ferns frequently towered over Eleanor, forcing her to push them aside to squeeze in-between them. The canopy was so damn thick, that at times she could not even see the sun.

As she wandered, she kept turning her head to look behind her. She did not know why, but Eleanor had a feeling she was being watched. She even heard branches creak once in a while, but nothing happened.

Every now and then, she would teleport upon large, strong branches to scan her environment, but that only revealed endless arrays of more branches in all directions. So, sometimes, she would teleport atop the canopy, standing tall atop the crown of trees. Though, there was just a horizon of treetops everywhere. She could not see any structures, either. Nevertheless, the feeling someone was watching her remained.

A while later, Eleanor noticed something amiss with the trees. Some trees had been broken asunder, as if a great force ripped through them, often near the trunk. Such damage left behind tall splintered trunks, and sometimes the top half of a tree lying on its side. Since none of the trees had lost their leaves, the damages would have to be rather recent. Occasionally, she saw short grooves in the ground ending in diagonal holes, as if something had dove into the ground at an angle with great force. Oddly enough, all such holes came from the same direction.

After half an hour of walking and observing trees snapped in half, Eleanor heard running water, which shot her out of her little investigation.

"Oh! Good!" she exclaimed, jogging to the sound of rushing water.

Eleanor soon found a river flowing along a series of mossy ruins overgrown with vines. The ruins seem to have once been giant chunks of towers, as they had stairwells. Tiny waterfalls leaked out holes in the ruins here and there, and the remains of an ancient highway made the ground toward the river flat.

Kneeling before the river and cupping her hands in the water, Eleanor drank her full. She also put water in her hair to cool down, and rinsed her face and arms. Sitting on her heels, and placing her hands on her lap, she relaxed.

Suddenly, a spear fell from above, stabbing into the riverside before Eleanor, splashing a little water onto her and causing her to flinch. She reared and went to her feet, looking up the shaft of the spear, which was at least twelve feet long. A bronze spike was socketed over the butt, glinting in the sunlight.

A moment later, something huge leapt from above, landing in the river, splashing water everywhere. Not knowing what was going on, Eleanor wiped the water off her face, then formed a floating fireball over her palm. To her surprise, the huge thing did not retreat, walking through the water and grasping his spear.

What was remarkable about the huge thing, was both how it looked and how it was lacking in looks. It appeared to be nothing but a floating nervous system, brain, and eyeballs glowing blue. A transparent bluish aura surrounded the nervous system, creating lineations in shape of a huge bipedal creature. The glowing, translucent outline was perhaps nine feet tall, hiding a beast that breathed deeply and heavily. His translucency allowed him to appear as the colours of the jungle around him, but the silhouette-like blueness was noticeable up close.

The ghostly creature pulled his spear out the ground, then stabbed it into the forest floor at Eleanor's side, and scraped a line between her and the riverside.

"So, I'm not allowed to drink from the river..." Eleanor remarked quietly, analyzing the translucent beast before her.

 _He does not smell like roses... No ADAM, no Plasmids... Yet, he clearly possesses abilities that could only be possible with ADAM... Unless, it's something else. Hmm. Seems to be a mix of counterillumination, bioluminescence, retroreflection, nervous chromatophores, cerebral photophores... This is a biological stealth system..._

The beast grunted at Eleanor, leaning over and pushing her back. She stepped back, but raised her hand containing the floating fireball. The beast also stepped back. Eleanor did him a favour and charged her Plasmid, causing the flames to double in height. Grunting aloud, the beast spun around, landing on his hands and standing on all fours deeper in the water, keeping his spear underwater.

"There's a good boy. You keep your distance from me, and I won't have to hurt you," Eleanor warned calmly.

The translucent creature lowered, dipping his muzzle into the water.

"Tojt azd venri?" the creature deeply growled, or...asked? Eleanor was surprised, raising her eyebrows.

 _Did he just speak?_

The creature cocked his head, then stood upright. He stuck his spear into the riverside, then crossed his arms. His aural lineations rippled. Eleanor's eyebrows furrowed, and her eyes widened once the beast's natural stealth systems dissipated. What was revealed seemed to be a huge, bipedal monster covered with dark blue scales becoming brighter towards the belly.

He was quite reptilian in appearance, having a thick tapering tail as long as he was tall, rounded torso and hips, thick neck, ridged eyebrows, long limbs, no heels, small palms, and eight fingers and eight toes per limb ending in curved claws. However, his skull structure was like that of a panther, and even with his mouth closed, a pair of fangs curled over his lips. He had large, circular, blue eyes with large slit pupils. The veins in his eyes faintly glowed blue. Having both a muzzle and a forehead gave him a rather evolved look.

The beast suddenly cocked his head in the other direction; despite his large size, he could move with rapidity. He blinked with translucent inner eyelids, as if expecting something, yet unsure what.

" _Venri azd...waea?_ " the beast asked, speaking with a voice so deep and so guttural it was hard to notice the syllables or pronounciations.

"No...this can't be real..." Eleanor remarked, trying to figure things out.

The beast gripped his spear with both hands and leaned on it.

"Okay, I was walking towards Mother and Zachary, and then...I began falling from the sky? That... None of this makes any sense..." Eleanor said to herself.

" _An vits'qio azd wushia vaeti'ullovah. An tugo'qio azd vus cnu wishwa. Xeqio beil'qio venri chas, mohto oanan'chas, azd venri balar liliyu?_ " the creature continued, then made a gentle growl. " _Lortdu venri hohtof cnu fmahan, liliyu?_ "

Eleanor realized he was not muttering gibberish, but actually speaking a language (obviously not one she could understand). Since he was not possessing Plasmids, she could not merge her mind with his and understand him; any form of effective communication was hopeless.

"I...I can't speak your language," was all Eleanor could say, then heard echoing screeching.

The beast flinched, lowering in the water and looking up. Eleanor looked up as well, and saw, what appeared to be, flaming rockets. Echoes of booms sounded moments later. Many flocks of birds quickly flew out the trees.

" _Artillería!_ " the beast growled.

 _Artillería_ _?_ Eleanor thought to herself, wondering what that could mean. After a second of thinking, the next word kicked in. _Artillery..._

Eleanor could hear rocketry screeching as a few dozen rammed into trees, bursting into flames or bouncing off and continuing to spew fire out the backside. The smell of smoke quickly came, as well as crackling noises.

" _Ohgshar!_ " the creature warned, which Eleanor assumed meant _fire!_

Whoever was launching rockets, clearly intended to start a forest fire, in the area Eleanor happened to be standing in.

A huge splash suddenly came from the river, the beast jumping out of the water. Eleanor then heard a whooshing noise and a nearby tree trunk exploded, sending the top two-thirds of the tree falling over. Eleanor shielded herself with an anti-gravitational Plasmid to block the shards of wood. The beast seemed alright, his bulky, scaly body withstanding the woody shrapnel.

More booming echoed from far away. Eleanor looked up, seeing smoky explosions in the sky, and flaming debris rained from then explosions. Then, she saw something surprising. Up, high in the sky, appeared to be several zeppelin-like vessels, ranging from large to huge, complete with wooden tails, motors and engines. All the aircraft had massive red drapes cover their fronts, for whatever reason. The largest ones made booming sounds, firing what sounded like naval cannons.

Eleanor had walked into a damn war zone. When she looked at the creature, he seemed to glare at her, so she shrugged at him with big eyes.

"What?" she asked, and then the beast beckoned her. She paid close attention; could this gesture mean what she thought it means?

" _Tugo o!_ " the creature said, continuing his beckoning, " _Tugo o_!"

 _Follow me._


	24. Chapter 24 - The Ancient City

After perhaps an hour of running, poking over the treetops, Eleanor could see a huge pyramid, perhaps four thousand feet wide, and five hundred feet tall. Seemed that that's where they were headed, but there was still quite a bit of running to do!

Despite his size, the creature was quite fast on his feet. But so was Eleanor, and she had no problem keeping up with him. He often trampled over shrubbery and small trees, suggesting a lack of agility and manoeuvrability. He stopped to look behind, Eleanor already standing behind him. He briefly growled while rearing.

"Oh, I can run fast," Eleanor assured with a small smile. The beast nodded, then darted off, Eleanor running after him, the two moving quite fast.

Cannon fire and rocketry screamed in the skies, shells exploded midair and rained down fiery debris, and the airships' naval guns bombarded the area below them. The artillery batteries fired both at the air and across the landscape, clearly a battle of land and air. Soon, Eleanor heard the echoes of gunfire, fire and smoke building around her as well.

" _Yarsto vrau'hn' pextnu, favi!_ " the beast grumbled, jumping through a wall of vegetation and breaking through it, Eleanor jumping through the hole he made.

Up ahead was a graveyard-like series of ruins. He lowered himself as he sprinted, body rippling into translucency. Eleanor also lowered herself as she ran, hearing loud gunfire off to the sides.

Perhaps a hundred feet to her left, she saw, apparently, men wearing medieval armour, taking cover amidst ruins. Each man wore a steel cuirass, great helm, greaves, vambraces, and demi-gauntlets, metal armour worn over padding. Over their armour, they wore the hide of a jaguar, wolf, spectacled bear, crocodile, anaconda, some sort of giant predatory bird, or for a few soldiers, the hide of a feathered dinosaur. The heads of the animals were worn over the helmet.

The anachronistic soldiery were armed with firelocks of varying length and size: muskets, arquebuses, carbines, pistols, a few blunderbusses, and a few wall guns placed over short cover. The soldiers also had backswords and daggers at their sides, daggers have a ring at the cross-guard. Their musketry created thick curtains of smoke, concealing them.

Meanwhile, far to Eleanor's right, seemed to be the entrance to a mausoleum. A huge pyramid towered after the mausoleum, and mounted atop it, a big airship that had yet to take-off, looking rather damaged.

Various soldiery took cover amidst the ruins towards the mausoleum and pyramid, but these soldiers were different. They were armed with more modern-looking guns, reminding Eleanor of firearms of the First and Second World Wars. They wore a mix of formal clothes, working clothes, bullet belts, and military pouches on their clothes. Many had half their faces painted red or wore red bandanas or leathery masks. A few even wore goofy red hoods with cloth horns. These more modern-looking soldiery consisted of white men and African-Americans.

The prospect of soldiers using ramrods to reload their guns, compared to soldiers using magazines or clips, seemed like pretty hopeless odds. Nevertheless, the anachronistic soldiery stood their ground.

"Where the hell is she goin'?" one of the black men exclaimed as Eleanor followed her companion.

"Get ou' a' deh way!" one of the white men shouted, having an Irish accent, reminding Eleanor of Cathal.

 _They speak English..._ Eleanor thought to herself as both sides stopped fighting, as if letting her run through the crossfire.

" _Mar'e! Verda, pirimmur gar kal!_ " one of the anachronistic soldiers shouted, one donning the hide of a feathery dinosaur, probably a commander. Many of the plated soldiers withdrew their daggers and inserted them over their barrels, whilst some dropped their firearms and unsheathed their swords.

" _Ke serim, y bikadinir!_ " another shouted, and taking the advantage of Eleanor's distraction, many of the anachronistic soldieries jumped over their cover and charged forth with bayonets or swords, emerging from the thick smoke caused by their firelocks while screaming like bloodthirsty animals.

The sudden war cry caused the modern soldiers to hesitate, beholding blades and armours glinting in the sunlight. Suddenly, the charging warriors spread out, running from cover to cover just as the modern gunfire commenced. Some charging warriors fired their firelocks while running, then threw down their guns and unsheathed backswords, clearly indicating their next plan of attack! The modern bullets pierced their plate armour easily enough, poking clean holes, but those shot continued charging. It appeared that modern bullets failed to penetrate their padded armour with enough force to kill, but blood gushed out the holes in their armour at every heartbeat.

"Here they come! Get ready!" a black man yelled, emptying his sniper rifle rounds on a few charging warriors with headshots.

"You better not get me killed!" Eleanor shouted, mostly to her guide, but also to those who could speak English.

"Wha deh hell are ya doin', lassie? Get yer ass outta 'ere!" an Irishman screamed, shooting his machine gun at her direction to suppress a few warriors moving into cover. One of them fired his musket, hitting the Irishman in the chest. He staggered and then slumped behind cover.

Eleanor continued following her friend, the sounds of gunfire, clicking armour, war cries, and bombardment echoing in all directions. She was surprised to note that, despite their heavy medieval armour, the warriors sprinted with great speed, catching up to their modern foes within a few seconds. A short exchange of gunfire at point-blank range rook dozens of warriors down, armour ripping apart and blood erupting, but firelocks used at point-blank range also took out some soldiers.

Once able, the warriors rammed their bayonets into their enemies, but those with swords grabbed their foes' guns first, then proceeded to cut the head or arm off, or repeatedly chop. The modern soldiery relied on bats, cudgels, or clubbing with their guns, but against such armoured foes, stood little chance. The few soldiers who wore blast armour and devil-like helmets fared better, one launching a rocket and hurling a dozen warriors into the air. However, the charging warriors jumped upon the armoured soldiers, bringing them to the ground, pulled their helmets off, and thrust their swords into their faces or headbutted their helms to bust open skulls.

A portion of soldiers ran away, but their medieval-armoured pursuers caught up with them, jumping on their backs, bringing them down to let others finish them off. Other pursued and simply bayoneted fleeing foes in the back.

Eleanor's big friend trampled over warriors and soldiers in his way, Eleanor skipping over them to follow the glowing nervous system.

" _Prudii verda!"_ one of the anachronistic warriors shouted, sounding like a warning. Several other warriors spun around, but only saw Eleanor running between them.

" _Iba'..._ "

" _Tion'ad?_ "

" _Sur'ar bat te akaanir!_ " one of the warriors shouted, smacking the helmet of the previous one who spoke, to get everyone to focus on the battle.

Eleanor could not possibly know what they were saying, but she figured they were exclaiming surprise. They spoke some form of Mando'a, a language that did not exist in Eleanor's world, unsurprisingly.

" _Prudii verda!_ " another warrior shouted, he and a few others turning around and firing their flintlock muskets at Eleanor's friend as he darted across their path. This subsequently meant that they fired at Eleanor's direction, but fortunately, they missed.

"Hey! Don't shoot me!" Eleanor yelled, but the warriors charged the beast anyways, gripping their muskets in both hands by the barrel and swinging them like clubs.

The beast swung his spear like a bat, the shaft hitting one warrior across the helm and staggering him. Upon being hit by the heavy firelocks, the beast grunted but did not seem hurt. He bashed the middle of his spear into a warrior's helm and staggered him, and a push kick took him off his feet. The beast then dropped his spear and grabbed one of the men who was repeatedly hitting him with the stock of a musket, lifted him overhead, and slammed him headfirst into the ground. The man was not killed, but quite dazed. Swinging his big paws, the beast's mighty blows shook armour, and knocked two other warriors off their feet.

A few other warriors noticed something amiss, so they turned, dropped their spent guns, unsheathed swords, and charged the beast. The beast growled at them, but they reached him and began cutting at him, edges sliding off his hide without doing much.

The beast swiped his claws powerfully and repeatedly, knocking aside incoming swords and hitting helms, but then his foes suddenly were blasted back by some force. The beast turned around, seeing Eleanor amassing a man-sized ring of purple. She unleashed her Plasmid, the wave of anti-gravitational power knocking back a dozen warriors into ruins.

"We better be close to wherever you're taking me!" Eleanor yelled at her guide, and then following him around the corner of a giant head statue. After that, she joined running with several other warriors who happened to be running in the same direction. She and they saw a rather huge man who looked like a wooden Abraham Lincoln, wielding a big crank gun.

"No negotiation, no surrender, no forgiveness!" a hollow-sounding voice exclaimed from the wooden man, accompanied by mechanical noises. His crank gun began ripping, unleashing a rapid stream of gunfire, bullets hitting the ground and kicking earth and bits of rubble at Eleanor.

" _Woo-whoa!_ " Eleanor squeaked, skipping out of the path of bullets; the construct was not aiming at her?

The warriors near her fired their muskets and continued running, but were nonetheless gunned down before reaching cover. About two dozen other warriors kept their heads low behind various ruins and rubble, suppressed by the crank gun which did not seem to ever aim at Eleanor. Their firelocks were useless against the mechanical entity.

" _Cuun gaid shuk'yc contra ibac tracy'uur! Vencuyanir hukaatir!_ " one of the warriors screamed, waving his hand downwards, his platoon keeping their heads low as the crank gun suppressed them.

"Hide if you must, but there shall be no mercy!" the mechanical construct warned, jogging forth to seek out his enemies. Other soldiers appeared off in the distance, snipers and riflemen, who took cover and fired at the suppressed enemies. "You are wheat, and we the scythe!"

A spear suddenly rammed into the construct's arm, pinning it against its body, preventing it from holding its weapon with both hands; the crank gun lowered, firing into the ground. Eleanor saw her guide leap upon the wooden man. The translucent creature's weight brought the construct down, then had its head promptly ripped off. The beast then ripped its spear out the construct's body and arm, then darted off.

" _Te beskar'ad ru'naastar! Ram'or val taap!_ " one of the warriors shouted, and he and his fellows leapt over their cover and charged enemies further up the isle of ruins. Gunfire and a few rockets showered the incoming warriors, ruins sometimes blowing apart, but they kept charging.

Eleanor had no choice but to follow her guide through the chaos with just her one eye. She could have used her Plasmids to cause some real mayhem, but she did not know who was friend or foe, especially since no one was intentionally trying to kill her. For now, she would be patient.

Looking up, Eleanor could see a few airships floating by, people atop them firing rockets and guns downward. Since they could shoot overhead, the warriors in cover were left vulnerable.

" _Me'sene laam!_ " a nearby warrior warned, and then a rocket sent he and a few others through the air.

One airship was hit by an artillery barrage of some sort. Eleanor saw large metal balls thudding against the hull, splintering it open here and there, but the airship remained flying without much trouble. A few more cannonballs simply bounced off the balloon.

 _Cannonballs?_ Eleanor thought to herself, seeing some rockets screaming towards the airships as well. She figured the artillery batteries were perhaps a thousand yards away, but it was impossible to see them through the jungle.

The rockets fired from ground level appeared to be quite old-fashioned, essentially oversized iron-cased rockets that served as explosive incendiary weapons. Soon, shells exploding midair hurled some fiery debris into the airships, causing small fires. However, the artillery was unable to down any of the airships, at least so far. The largest airships, the ones equipped with naval guns, appeared to be immune to the artillery, and continued bombarding ground forces far away.

The bombardment caused more fires farther into the jungle, Eleanor seeing pillars of smoke rising here and there. Things were getting crazy, though airships near rising smoke were forced to fly away from it. She assumed that forest fires were deliberately started to drive off the airships or hide the positions of ground forces. Against technologically superior foes, craftiness was the only option, after all.

Up ahead, the beast began to crawl up a steep ridge of rubble with a tiny waterfall going down it. Eleanor simply teleported up there, beating the creature to the top. He looked up at her with a snort.

"Come on, slowpoke, let's go," Eleanor teased.

More trees up ahead, with a growing forest fire a few hundred feet to Eleanor's right. She could see what appeared to be a walled city, surrounding the giant pyramid the two headed to. The echoes of gunfights and bombardment were much louder here.

Placed against the wall were several siege ladders, made crudely but strongly, simply consisting of tall, narrow trees with horizontal beams nailed into the trees. So far, there was no one on the ladders or walls. The creature jumped, using two adjacent ladders to scale the walls, but once again, Eleanor just teleported up to the top.

Atop the walls, Eleanor could see more of what was happening. The Mesoamerican city was overgrown and in ruins, but some of it had been converted into a makeshift military compound. Various muzzle-loading cannons were positioned along in the walls, towers, and even on the surfaces of pyramids and temples, operators equipped in padded armour and morions. Some of them were rocketeers, launching large Congreve rockets.

Despite inferior technology, the cannoneers used their hopelessly outdated weapons efficiently, firing at airborne enemies and bombarding, apparently, other sections of the ancient city beyond large sections of wooded areas. It seemed that opposing forces were both besieging and defending various parts of the city, which was quite oversized for them, considering that there probably were no more than a few hundred combatants in total. Most combatants seemed to have taken refuge in various ancient buildings or moved down overgrown streets in squads or platoons.

The giant airships caused great havoc amongst the anachronistic warriors, shells blasting cannoneers and their equipment off their own walls. Sections of various walls, towers, and temples had already been blown apart, though the giant pyramid seemed to withstand modern shells without too much trouble.

" _Has'hn' ras ooto_ ," the beast said, pointing at the giant pyramid. " _Venri jas xesq tova'viv nin venri_."

"Right..." Eleanor remarked, growing a bit fond of this big guy.

Machine gun fire took the two off-guard, several bullets simply bouncing off the beast's translucent body, his hide as strong as a crocodile's. A few soldiers fired out the windows of an ancient building, probably mistaking Eleanor for an enemy. Instinctively, she threw an explosive fireball at the structure, the explosion ceasing their gunfire.

"Hey! Don't shoot me!" Eleanor yelled, but more machine gun fire came back, as well as a rocket. Eleanor used her anti-gravitational Plasmid to loop the rocket, sending it flying away somewhere as bullets hit the road around her feet. She teleported around the corner of a statue.

The creature ran towards the building, throwing his spear into one of the windows, one of the men shouting aloud. The beast then clawed up the building's wall, grabbing one of the gunmen and pulling him out the window.

"Ahhhh!" the fella shouted as he fell, a large man wearing blast armour and a helmet shaped like a bull's head, landing hard on his shoulders, his rocket launcher landing nearby.

The creature crawled into the building, two men shouting aloud as the beast growled, accompanied by thrashing and wet thudding. Eleanor grimaced. She could only imagine what the beast did to the men, but they were soon quiet.

As the beastly-looking soldier picked himself up, he lifted his rocket launcher up as well, but a big spear was thrown out the window and bounced off his helmet, leaving a dent in it. Regaining his footing, the man raised his rocket launcher again, and the real beast leapt out the window. Eleanor teleported beside the man, grabbing and pulling his rocket launcher out his grasp; her friend promptly landed atop him, pinning him to the road.

Grabbing the man's helmet by both its horns, the creature repeatedly smashed the helmet against the road, until the helmet loosened and he was able to pull it off. Eleanor's eye widened when she saw her friend snap his jaws over the man's head and pull him up with just his jaws. As if a dog thrashing a chew toy, the creature jerked his head to and fro, and the man's heavy, heavily-armoured body flailed side to side. Placing his reptilian hands on the man's shoulders, the beast pushed the man downwards while the beast pulled his head back, keeping his jaws locked, and literally ripped the man's head off.

"Done and dusted for sure," Eleanor remarked. She kept her rocket launcher, and then the two continued their run towards the great pyramid.

It was not long until Eleanor saw another surprise. This time, it was huge, and fast. She saw what appeared to be a giant primitive cyborg, wearing a red hood, red straps around its torso, and huge trousers. It was moving along the ancient buildings like a gorilla, using it's massive and greatly elongated arms to propel himself. His arms were longer than his height, and his huge hands covered with blood.

The giant mechanical thing was smashing open buildings, grabbing anachronistic warriors and throwing them great distances or slamming them into structures. Their firelocks did little against the massive mechanical monster. Even Eleanor's friend seemed nervous, going on all fours and hissing as the cyborg very quickly approached.

"Hahn-dee-man!" the creature bellowed.

"Hm? Handyman? So, you do know a few English words after all!" Eleanor remarked, but the creature was clearly spooked. Eleanor gently placed her hand on his shoulder, and he looked at him. "I'll handle this, you stay safe!" Eleanor said. She, surprisingly, tossed her rocket launcher aside and approached the giant cyborg.

"You wanna feel like me? Smash you into bits!" the giant cyborg shouted as he noisily trudged toward the girl.

Eleanor was not afraid, galring at the mechanical thing with her one eye. She began by throwing large, explosive, fireballs as Big Sisters tend to, one after the other hitting the giant thing. He soon caught fire and roared, so Eleanor did him a favour and threw more fireballs at him.

Raising his gorillian, mechanical arms, the Handyman slammed them down, but Eleanor easily dodged them, skipping to the side. So, the cyborg swung his arm sideways. Eleanor jumped in the air, placing her hands atop the incoming arm and flipping over it. She then unleashed a powerful electrobolt, shocking the Handyman with such force he reared and shook wildly.

" _RRRAARRRR!_ Get you big! Grind you into pieces, like how my body feels!" the cyborg roared, and once recovering from his electrocution, began a series of smashing his arms at Eleanor. She dodged each and every single one without any trouble, but she also used her psychokinesis to slow down the monster's hands. "Coward! Stop! Fight!"

"What was that? Make it last? Good idea!" Eleanor replied, and as the Handyman swung his arms down upon her, she teleported away, reappearing as sitting on his own shoulders! Hugging the big guy's neck with her legs, Eleanor placed her hands on his ears, then unleashed her fiery Plasmids, sending them into his huge skull. Smoke and flames flowed out the Handyman's nose and mouth, and he screamed with such force, his voice echoed down the city block.

"Get off from me!" he howled, but before he could grab her, Eleanor rolled backwards off his shoulders, flipping onto her feet. The Handyman spun around, slamming his arms down, head still burning from within. "Break you, little Comstock! Break you False Prophet! I BREAK YOU, FALSE PROPHET!" he continued, smashing his hands like crazy everywhere Eleanor was, breaking bits of homes.

"What are you talking about?" Eleanor shouted, skipping and leaping out of the cyborg's massive hands. "I am _not_ some bloody messiah! You're about as smart as a Brute Splicer!" she continued, performing a backwards flip, then lobbing a fireball at the Handyman.

"My head, hurts! Heart, hurts! Skin, hurts! I do all to you! _RRRUUURRR!_ " he roared, and Eleanor chuckled as she teleported behind him. The Handyman grunted from confusion, then slowly turned around.

"I can see the ugly one trying not to cry! Don't worry, you only live once, so I'll make this last!" Ms. Lamb taunted.

Roaring again, the Handyman propelled him with his hands with great vigour and anger, Eleanor unleashing big fireballs in one hand, and electrobolts in the other. Her Plasmids broke the cyborg open, a circular plate bursting open and revealing some sort of mechanical heart. Eleanor sighed.

"A girl gets all worked up, just over a big, dumb, broken toy..."

"URRRRAAAHH!"

Eleanor used her telekinesis to slow down the Handyman's movement, then raised a chunk of broken masonry, and hurled it at his head with great force. It bounced off with a satisfying crunch, and the cyborg reared from pain, forehead cracked open.

"Ow! Hurts so much more! I do to you, little False Prophet!"

"Oh my, the False Prophet is getting bored!" Eleanor teased, dodging the brute's attacks, but then he actually grabbed her. She lightly gasped.

"Ah-hah! Got you! Now chew brains out!" the Handyman yelled, gripping Eleanor tightly and lifting her to bite her head off. On the last moment, she teleported away, and the Handyman bit his thumb instead. "Uhh!? But nothing outrun me! Where go? Make me angry!? Fight, noisy coward!"

"Over here!" Eleanor called down the street, so the Handyman turned and charged her. He leapt at her, now slapping his mighty hands together to crush her. Eleanor flipped backwards, the cyborg's hands smashing together nothing.

Eleanor quickly jumped atop the closed hands, running along an arm and dropkicking the Handyman in the face, each heel ramming into each of his eyes. She then teleported midair behind the Handyman, and cast several explosive fireballs at him.

"UHHHRRR! Not fire again!" the cyborg wailed as his body ignited again.

"Don't worry, I promise to keep you toasty!" Eleanor said, "What was that, dear Papa? Teach him how to dance? Certainly, Papa!" she continued, unleashing Incinerate that engulfed the Handyman. He roared in agony, flames eating away at his mechanical body, the glass covering his heart slowly melting.

While on fire, the cyborg swung his arms with wild abandon, moving around randomly and attacking buildings at times. His efforts were all for nothing, Eleanor dancing amidst the hands and flames, casting more and fierier Plasmids to blacken the Handyman, and rather enjoying herself! The Handyman's head burned away, leaving behind a charred skull, eyeballs melting.

"Aww, that's too bad... I wish you still had your eyes, I want to watch you...slip away."

The Handyman raised his arms and waved them while screaming, flailing his arms with such force his mechanical parts loosened, bolts flying out. Eleanor blasted forth two electrobolts, one in each hand, electrocuting the Handyman into a reared position.

"RRRRAAAGGGHHH! Coals everywhere! Everything hurts! Everything so hot!" he howled as he shivered from electricity and fire.

"And you were doing so well..." Eleanor lamented, and then she extended her arm, and made a fist. Her telekinetic Plasmid focused on the Handyman's heart, slowly pulling it out his chest, cables and sparks erupting. She did not rip the heart out, but just let it hang, still beating outside his chest.

The Handyman looked down at himself, staring at his still-beating heart. Then, he felt his jaw being pulled, as if from within. Feeling his teeth and jaw cracking, it gradually separated from his skull, soon popping off, leaving his tongue to dangle. Eleanor smirked, then jerked her hand forwards, and the jawbone shot backwards, the sides stabbing into the Handyman's eye sockets.

The electricity ended, and the Handyman slammed his hands down, heart dangling lower, the cyborg unable to see and talk.

Eleanor calmly walked forwards, hip sway generous. Once able, she grabbed the hanging heart with both hands, feeling it pump, then ripped it out the Handyman's chest. He fell into a sitting position, then slowly fell backwards, landing with a crash as a heaping pile of flaming junk. Eleanor tossed the heart onto the fiery pile.

"Didn't mean to break your heart, hun," she commented, then turned around. She saw the creature standing a short distance away, his natural stealth systems off, mouth open, eyes big. "Now, where were we?"

The creature pointed at the giant pyramid.

"Oh, right, yes... Giant pyramid, how could I miss that?" Eleanor chuckled to herself. She used psychokinesis to pull the rocket launcher into her hands, and the two moved on.

A while later, Eleanor heard galloping, and turned her head. Sure enough, galloping down a street, were perhaps eight horsemen, three at the front wielding lances, the others carrying carbines. All the cavalrymen wore rusty steel cuirasses and open-faced helmets over padded garments, but their equipment was plain.

One of the lancers pointed his lance at her direction, clearly indicating to attack the translucent beast. The lancers couched their lances and charged, spurring their horses, whilst the beast growled while retrieving his spear.

At first, Eleanor considered firing her rocket launcher into the cavalry, but did not want to kill the horses, and there just was not any time to form Plasmids. So, she fired her rocket launcher into the ground ahead of the horsemen, the blast and debris scaring the horses and causing them skid to a stop. The whiplash hurled the riders over their horses' necks, their steeds then rearing and neighing.

" _Haar'chak!_ " one of the lancers shouted as he tumbled to the ground, dropping his lance as well. He sat up and looked at Eleanor. He and the other men reminded her of the facial appearance of Latinos.

The beast was about to jump upon the downed men, but Eleanor grabbed his arm and pulled him to the side. The creature faced Eleanor silently, certainly surprised by how strong she was!

"We don't need to fight everything that comes our way! Let's just go!" Eleanor said, gesturing at the creature to move on, so he nodded and darted off. Eleanor dropped her emptied rocket launcher and ran with him.

The horsemen with carbines sat up and aimed, but then lowered their guns, wondering why a girl was running off with a beast. They looked at each other, dumbstruck.

Later, Eleanor and her guide neared the giant pyramid, an airship's naval guns shooting at it while the bombardiers positioned on one side of the pyramid fired back at the aircraft. Eleanor felt the ground shaking underfoot.

" _Was'hn' lupo bnashiro,_ " the creature bellowed, heading for what appeared to be a giant entranceway leading into the pyramid.

Eleanor could only see blackness in there, and the bombardment made the ground shake again. She skidded to a stop.

"Wait! We're going _inside_ the pyramid? Don't you feel the whole place shaking?" Eleanor asked. The beast went on all fours to stop himself running, then spun around, huffing aloud.

" _Joth tau'hn' o! Has'hn' azd iyo'carco!_ " the beast growled, sounding desperate, then placed a hand on his forehead, as if thinking hard. He stood up, looking at Eleanor. "Eh, eh, ell...elzbeth, elabath, ela, ela, elithibith, elkbeth..." he was trying to say something. Eleanor furrowed her eye.

"Elizabeth?" Eleanor suggested, then he pointed at her for a moment.

"Elizabeth!" the beast exclaimed.

Eleanor furrowed her eyebrows.

 _This cannot be a coincidence, he clearly wants to take me to someone named Elizabeth,_ Eleanor thought to herself.

"Alright, let's go see Elizabeth," Eleanor said, the creature nodding again, "whoever she may be."

The creature nodded again, then ran up the steps, heading for the entrance. Eleanor walked after him, but had a bad feeling. The echoes of gunfire, explosions, rockets, and humming of the aircraft made everything feel so unstable.

Eleanor heard the echoes of galloping, and turned to look down the highway. Sure enough, perhaps a thousand horsemen had entered the city via the gatehouse a few miles away, the many hooves thundering against the ground and shaking the entire city. The horsemen were firing into buildings and receiving gunfire and even rockets, literally charging their way through the city and whatever opposition was in their way.

Eleanor's eye widened and her mouth dropped. However, it was not because of the numerous horses, but what was running with them. There was a fucking triceratops part of the cavalry charge, the rider mounted on a saddle on the dinosaur's neck. On the dino's back was a wooden platform with swivel guns mounted at each corner of the railings.

Sure enough, some airships targetted the cavalry, firing shells at them and wrecking havoc amongst the horses. Nevertheless, the horsemen continued galloping toward the pyramid, whilst the remaining cannoneers on the pyramid fired at their airborne enemies with greater vigour. The charging cavalry spread apart, to lessen casualties from incoming fire, but also so that some pursued fleeing soldiers.

Eleanor faced the entranceway, and sighed.

"If this pyramid collapses over my head...I'll kill you."


	25. Chapter 25 - Black Sun

Eleanor formed a floating flame above her hand to see. Her big friend reverted to his translucent bioluminescent form, casting some light as well. He led her through the interior at a jogging pace, the main passageway as tall and wide as the entrance. Various smaller passengers connected to the main one, quite labyrinthine to behold, consisting of more conjunctions deeper into the structure. The pyramid often shook, dust and little stones fluttering about, and the echoes of battle reverberated throughout the infrastructure.

Eleanor occasionally saw dead anachronistic warriors, equipped like those outside. The now-dead warriors had taken bioluminescent fungus with them, stored in lanterns, most of which were broken. The bioluminescent fungus glowed white powerfully, bright enough to illuminate a radius of about twenty feet.

Most had been killed by bullets that pierced their helmets, or multiple gunshots through their body armour. Others did not wear helmets and had their skulls crushed in at the sides, blood and brains smeared on the floor.

 _So, there is fighting inside, too._

Eleanor did not know how to use firelocks, so she instead took a dead warrior's backsword.

 _Better than nothing else._

A while later, Eleanor found another surprise. As her guide led her, she saw thick copper cables running along the walls and flooring, sometimes entering holes in the walls or ceiling. All the cables were covered with dust, some buried under rubble, others torn.

The cables looked more like dirty, deformed, twisted ropes than actual cables, the insulation and jacketing rotted away long ago, revealing the eroded, deformed, split shielding. Though, the bunched wiring consisting of the core was still functional, a spark or zap occasionally appearing here and there. Eleanor even felt static electricity in a few places, causing her hair to stick out and skin to wriggle.

Her friend tripped on a cable, falling over with a grunt. Eleanor stopped by him.

"Ged beh vrau'hn' ahfah ral Tha'hh'ck Advoctem!" Eleanor's guide seemed to warn, pointing at a symbol carved into the wall. The symbol was a Schwarze Sonne, just like the one Eleanor saw in her dream so long ago. Tha'hh'ck Advoctem must have meant Black Sun in the beast's language. The two continued moving.

Soon, Eleanor and her guide could overhear gunfire farther into the pyramid. Firing weapons inside a massive, stony structure was quite deafening, echoing like crazy. The gunfire was slow and loud, definitely not modern. To make things worse, roaring, howling, hissing and growling also echoed, clearly not of humans or any animal Eleanor knew about.

Eleanor's friend made a growl that became a roar, and he charged into the blackness up ahead, his biological stealth systems deactivating. He quickly disappeared into the shadows, armed with nothing but his spear.

"Hey! Or do I have to go alone, now?" Eleanor called, but her friend ran like the wind.

Even sprinting as fast as a Big Sister could go, Eleanor could not catch up to him. She only heard his sixteen clawed toes clicking against the stone flooring for a few seconds, and he was soon gone. Eleanor figured he sprinted at about seventy kilometres per hour, much faster than any human could run, including herself. This whole time he had led her, he had not ran full-speed until now?

Well, up ahead, Eleanor could see muzzle flashes, lanterns filled with bioluminescent fungus, and glowing things moving around in the blackness. Seemed that a brutal, close-quarters fight was taking place in the main chamber, undoubtedly at the centre of the pyramid.

"Guess that's where I'm headed," Eleanor said to herself.

Once Eleanor reached the main chamber, she could see only patches of the area, as a vast majority of the chamber was just darkness. There were perhaps a dozen groups of warriors, illuminated by their glowing fungus, firing into the darkness when able, and then relying on bayonets or swords to fight beasts like Eleanor's friend.

Eleanor could hear the beasts running in the blackness, in constant motion, about half of them with their biological stealth system active. In the darkness, glowing eyes and nervous systems looked like ghostly undead creatures, rather frightening to behold.

The beasts relied on a simple tactic: surround a group of warriors, throw spears at them, then pounce upon them at the same time. Many pounced upon bayonets or swords, but nevertheless landed atop the warrior, proceeding to grab them by their helmeted heads and smashing them against the floor. Since the warriors wore so much armour, they were immune to claws and teeth, but were nevertheless pummeled and chewed on, only able to punch and kick back. Their helmets were soon ripped off, then the beasts clamped their jaws onto necks and thrashed the armoured men to and fro while growling. The largest and strongest beasts simply sunk their teeth into heads, crushing the skulls.

There was nothing Eleanor could do for the fearless warriors, but she had to move on. Very soon, her floating flame revealed several beasts, who suddenly appeared before Eleanor, but she neither flinched nor blinked. They aggressively barked and growled, so Eleanor threw explosive fireballs to the floor, and they ran off hissing. However, she constantly heard other beasts crawling all around her, probably wondering if they should pounce on her or not. They sometimes threw spears at her, or leapt at her, but she dove out of the way.

"Hey! Stop it, I'm on your side, right?" Eleanor yelled with some anger. Both her hands ignited with fiery Plasmids, and all the beasts surrounding her skipped away.

" _Wak! Kaia hohtof arnaq jej!_ " one of the beasts shouted, standing tall and pushing over another beast who was about to jump. Eleanor had a feeling it was her guide. Upon his shout, the creatures in her area ran off and left her alone.

"Thanks!" Eleanor called with a wave, but her gratitude was interrupted when she heard a woman's scream amidst the chaos. Eleanor ran forth to see what was going on.

" _Make it stop!_ " some woman cried, Eleanor following the direction of the scream.

Eleanor noticed something familiar floating around the other end of the chamber: a Tear. Then another, and another. Several Tears formed, but were flickering and jerking about in random directions. Eventually, the Tears jumped into one another, becoming spherical in shape. The spherical Tear vibrated and hummed with power, and cast enough light to reveal many silhouettes and dark blurs, of what appeared to be large men fighting the beasts and human warriors.

The large men were indeed big, standing at around two metres tall, and quite bulky. Once close enough, Eleanor's flames revealed how the men looked. Most had long hair, heavy beards, fair skin, and fair eyes. Each man wore a long leather duster-like coat, and over that a large steel cuirass like those worn during the First World War, the coat's collars rising through the cuirass's opening for the head. Each man also wore a Berndorfer helmet and steel-toed boots. Engraved and then painted black on the breastplate and sides of the helmet was the Schwarze Sonne, the symbols clearly showing what these men were about.

"So they are Black Sun..." Eleanor said to herself. Unlike the human warriors, who looked like Latinos or Hispanics, Black Sun soldiery appeared quite European.

The men wielded bolt-action rifles and pump-action shotguns, which they used with potentially lethal effect against both beasts and the anachronistic warriors who came to sight. All the soldiers had double-edged bayonets at their belts (the belt was worn around the cuirass) or already affixed to their rifles.

"AAAAAGGGHHH!" one of the soldiers screamed with great force, having a deep, loud, guttural scream that Eleanor clearly heard. He was repeatedly bayonetting, kicking, and headbutting multiple beasts and their claws, standing his ground quite well despite his bad odds. "All stand their ground! Defend the Enigma at all costs!" he continued.

He seemed to be a sergeant or something, as his armour also included spiked spaulders, and his helm had a veil of mail. He rammed his bayonet deep into a beast's chest, feeling its claws swiping at his helm and spaulders. He pulled the bayonet out and swung his rifle stock across the beast's jaw, staggering it, then lunged his bayonet into its sternum again. The beasts' hide sure could take quite a lot of punishment!

"At least they speak English..." Eleanor remarked.

As Eleanor moved onward, she saw one beast leap at a Black Sun soldier from behind, but the soldier spun around and fired his shotgun at the beast's face at point-blank range, blasting the front half of its muzzle off. He then pumped his shotgun and fired at a charging warrior, piercing multiple holes in the warrior's armour, but he continued charging anyways.

The warrior thrust his bayonet forth, the Black Sun soldier knocking it aside with his shotgun, then swinging it like a club into the warrior's head. A creature grabbed the soldier by the legs, pulled him down, crawled atop him, then began chewing on his neck while shaking him side to side. Another beast leapt at the anachronistic warrior, who caught the beast midair with his bayonet, but the two toppled over one another and wrestled.

Elsewhere, Eleanor saw a charging beast, shot several times by Black Sun riflemen, blood gushing out at every heartbeat, yet the beast continued running. Ever after three soldiers rammed their bayonetted rifles into the monster, it began snapping its jaws and swiping its claws at them, clawings a few faces open. Another rifleman sent his bayonet into the beast's mouth and then fired, killing the beast. A moment later, a thrown spear drove through a rifleman's neck and he spun to the floor. Then, another beast dove into the legs of a soldier, teeth locking over the leg, and the two wrestled frantically.

Eleanor looked to the other side. She saw a warrior, who seemed to be crazy, as he was shirtless and wore no armour on the body, only a helmet, greaves and gauntlets, skin adorned with scars and tattoos. He wielded a flintlock pistol in one hand and a battleaxe in the other, charging into the fray and screaming like a maniac. He fired his pistol at a Black Sun rifleman, leaving a big dent and hole in it, the rifleman leaning over but staggering backwards. The injured soldier then lunged his rifle, driving the bayonet into the charging shirtless maniac. The maniac threw his pistol at the soldier's helmet, grabbed the soldier's rifle while the bayonet was still rammed inside him, then began hacking at the soldier's helm and face, dashing out blood. Two beasts, charging from either side, tackled into the duelling men, bringing them to the floor and wrestling like mad cats. Multiple beasts dug their jaws into the shirtless maniac's shoulders and torso, chewing him open.

The fighting was fierce and up close, many men firing blindly into blackness with the hopes of hitting an enemy, but a majority of combat was face-to-face. There was not one second without screaming and battle, of both man and beast. The prospect of fighting mostly in blackness made everything worse, and quite unpredictable.

"Dear God! Does everyone want to kill everything else here?" Eleanor exclaimed, keeping her head low. She looked around, trying to regain her senses.

Rapture had some pretty brutal gunfights and brawls with Splicers, but the fighting down here was intense. No matter where she looked, she at least heard screaming and roaring, and where there was light, man and beast rolled around, clawing and headbutting each other. However, whenever a beast got its jaws around someone's neck, the fight was soon over, a few men having their heads ripped off their shoulders.

Blood ran in small rivers throughout the flooring, but Eleanor managed to sprint while swerving, skipping, and jumping through the action. She occasionally had to parry an incoming bayonet or sword, but never fought back, just in case. However, whenever a beast charged her, she used her telekinesis to hurl it aside. When multiple creatures dove at her, she simply teleported a short distance away, the beasts smashing into each other and wondering what happened.

The farther Eleanor went, the thicker the fighting became; there was just more and more things in the way. So, Eleanor used her teleportation to get past the action. She stumbled upon a dead anachronistic warrior, who wore a peculiar backpack. Sticking out the top of the backpack was an antenna, and static noises came out of the backpack.

"Radio?" Eleanor asked, hearing distorted comm chatter, but there was no time to investigate.

Perhaps a hundred feet ahead, Eleanor could see the spherical Tear floating around. The silhouettes of large machinery were also present, going up the walls and rising to the ceiling. A forest of cables, tubes and chains hung from the ceiling as well.

Most of the machinery appeared broken or offline. But, in the middle of it all, directly from Eleanor's sight, a strange contraption lie, resembling a sun with eight rays around it. The mechanical circular section was perhaps twelve feet wide, but the contraption's ray-like appendages were well over thirty feet long, and produced wild electrical currents with the semblance of Tears. Each appendage ended at some sort of immense Tesla coil-like thing.

Lying in the centre of the contraption, on her back, was a small woman, illuminated by a Tear-like aura that surrounded her body. She wore a blue blouse, blue coat, and a white corset. Her clothes and hair were dirty and messy, and she looked terrible.

Long, chain-like mechanical appendages grasped the woman by the arms, legs, waist and neck, holding her in place with her limbs apart. Strangely enough, most of the length of the appendages were actually raised and slithering midair, as if moving on their own. Other appendages, not grasping the woman, slowly wriggled through the air, clearly moving on their own.

Sometimes, the contraption's Tear-like electricity shot into the spherical Tear, then whipped down and shocked the woman, causing her to shout in pain. Whenever that happened, the writhing appendages moved with greater speed for a moment.

"Oww! Anyone there?" the little lady called, breathing rapidly and heavily. Then, the Tesla coils whirred to life, and despair fell upon the small woman's face. "Ohhhh! No! Not again!" she cried, and then a steady stream of electricity passed through her. She violently shook in her tomb of electricity.

Suddenly, two large spotlights beamed over Eleanor from above, blinding her. She shielded her eye, hearing loud, sharp, static and tuning sounds. _KRRRK! KRRRCH! CHSHHH!_

That was when the pain hit Eleanor, and with such intensity, she fell to one knee, dropping her backsword.

"Uugghh!" Eleanor cried, grasping her forehead as blood leaked out her nose, mouth and ears. Her eye sockets beamed yellow, like tiny lighthouses, and she could not even hear the echoes of violence anymore. She did, however, hear the young woman scream in pain.

 _KRRRCH! CHSHHH! KRRRK! SHHHRRK!_

"Unknown interference detected at the Enigma!" a guttural, static voice spoke through some sort of radio or intercom, echoing throughout the chamber. "All available reinforcements, locate and abrogate the anomaly immediately!"

 _Aww, shit..._ Eleanor thought to herself, knowing that she was quite helpless.

The little lady raised her head, seeing Eleanor's difficult situation. The petite woman's hands shook, and a Tear formed just above Eleanor. Then, Eleanor's static difficulty seemingly got sucked up by the Tear, and Eleanor was back to normal. She quickly grabbed her backsword and stood up, left hand conjuring a mass of fiery Plasmids. The spotlights were still beaming upon her, much to her annoyance.

"HEY." a deep voice spoke heavily and loudly, yet was not shouted.

Eleanor noticed an immense man standing a short distance away. He was nearly seven feet tall, and quite muscular. He had short blond hair and a goatee. He wore no armour whatsoever, just trousers, steel-toed boots, and a sleeveless duster. Where his skin showed, there were many scars.

But, what made him truly unusual were mechanical eyeballs, metal jawbone, and everything from his elbows was just metallic skeleton and rubber tendon-like components. He wielded a large rifle made entirely from metal, absent of a magazine, but having two cylindrical extensions along either side of the barrel. He had a Bowie knife and machete at his sides, and a few grenades along his belt.

Well, the immense cyborg beckoned Eleanor, then turned to the side and ran off. A pair of headlights appeared behind where the immense man used to be standing. Eleanor heard the roar of an engine and screeching wheels. Some sort of large vehicle screeched out of the darkness, looking like a Minerva Armored Car doubled in size, and with much larger wheels.

Headlights beaming, tires screaming, the armoured car drove towards Eleanor, the driver surely intending to run her over! Eleanor dove out of the way, hearing the car swerve and then turn sharply, skidding around to a stop. Someone stood up for the Maxim machine gun turret, getting it ready.

Eleanor then heard huffs, and perhaps a dozen Black Sun soldiers fell seemingly from the darkness above, landing clumsily, but picking themselves up. They raised their rifles and opened fire, as did the armoured car's machine gun turret. They fired not only at Eleanor, but also at a horde of charging beasts. Bullets whizzing all around, Eleanor had no choice but to teleport away.

"Where did she go?" one of the riflemen exclaimed.

The two big spotlights wobbled around, then aimed randomly, illuminating various beasts and causing most to scatter. The armoured car drove aggressively while the machine gunner fired like a madman, driving into beasts and knocking them down, or simply running over them. The driver also drifted, so that the body of the car suddenly flailed and smashed into creatures. Wheels screeching, the vehicle continued driving around at high speed to ram into incoming creatures or drive after fleeing ones.

Eleanor reappeared in the darkness, seeing the armoured car scaring off many beasts, headlights revealing them and allowing the riflemen to pick them off. Eleanor unleashed a series of explosive fiery Plasmids akin to Big Sisters' Plasmids at the vehicle. Even after a few direct hits, the car continued driving as if nothing happened, but the wheels were smoking, and the machine gunner was still trigger-happy.

Hearing rapid footfall, Eleanor turned to the side, seeing the immense man running towards her. He quickly knelt on one knee, firing his metallic gun at her. Surprisingly, the gun did not shoot bullets, but instead shot bright green-glowing masses of something. Eleanor smelled roses, and figured that the rifle was implemented with ADAM, firing Plasmid-based projectiles. Her only conclusion was propelled unstable quantum mechanics.

Well, Eleanor skipped to the side, hit a few times and feeling the projectiles cut through her shirt and burst her skin open, blood gushing out. She cried out in pain.

You'll have to work extra hard to keep me alive today, sea slug!

Unleashing an electrobolt, Eleanor's Plasmid hit the cyborg in the face. He reared and leaned backwards, shaking on the spot, growling.

"AAAAGGGGHHHH-RRRRR!"

Heart beating hard, Eleanor charged the cyborg, throwing a fiery Plasmid at the cyborg just as his electrocution finished. He shouted aloud as he caught fire, hair burning away and clothes turning him into a torch. Surprisingly, he aimed his gun and fired at Eleany anyways, forcing her to teleport behind him.

He continued shooting while spinning around, shooting down a few beasts as a number of warriors fired at the Black Sun riflemen and then charged them. Eleanor grabbed the cyborg's gun and pushed it aside, and feeling the heat of his fire, she swung her backsword down to his skull. Another surprise; her sword hit something very hard and bounced off the man's skull. He staggered, but was still alive, and Eleanor's backsword had a big dent in the edge!

The cyborg punched Eleanor in the nose, and she felt hot, sharp pain erupt throughout the skull. The man then push kicked her back and opened fire upon her, but she teleported behind him again. He spun around with a spin kick, his heel hitting Eleanor across the temple, and she staggered, concussed. She swung her sword at him again, slicing across his face, blood spurting out, but he kept his skull intact.

He aimed and opened fire; Eleanor had no choice but to teleport away. He quickly spotted her in the darkness, shooting at her more. She darted away from the mysterious contraption, swerving amidst beasts and Black Sun infantry as the armoured car came back, driving after and shooting at fleeing enemies.

"Hey!" the cyborg shouted, running after Eleanor while shooting, sometimes carelessly firing into other Black Sun soldiers! However, she created distance, kept her head low, and ran like a Big Sister to avoid fire, several beasts dropping dead around her. Whatever weapon the cyborg had, its capabilities seemed to be anti-matter.

Surprisingly, the cyborg, despite his bulk and size, could run quite fast. Not as fast as the beasts, but Eleanor heard him catching up to her. It was only a matter of time before his accuracy was good enough to start shooting her in the back. So, Eleanor teleported above the cyborg, then used her psychokinesis to propel her downwards with great force, smashing into the man.

To Eleanor's surprise, the cyborg actually caught her and slammed her headfirst against the floor! Her little crash landing made her drop her sword, blood pouring out her scalp. Skull feeling like a broken war drum, Eleanor picked herself up, dazed and confused.

Ramming his rifle into Eleanor's sternum, the cyborg would have fired into her, but then one of the beasts landed on his shoulders, pinning him to the floor. Eleanor regained her senses, just in time to see a bioluminescent creature ram his spear into the back of the cyborg's neck. It was her guide.

"Good timing!" Eleanor stated, but then the armoured car screeched through the echoes of battle and blackness and rammed into the back of Eleanor. She hit the stone flooring instantly, whereas her friend ripped his spear out the cyborg's neck and jumped out of the way.

The armoured car drove in wide circles while the machine gunner reloaded. Eleanor's guide took the advantage, and, breathing heavily, ran after the car as it ran over a few other beasts and warriors. He leapt onto the back of the car, driving his spear into the vehicle, surprised that his spear simply slid off its armour! The gunner turned around, aiming his machine gun at the beast's face! Knowing the power of a machine gun, the creature swung sideways, launching himself off the car and sprinting away and machine gun fire followed him. Deactivating his biological stealth system, he disappeared in the blackness.

Dizzy and aching, Eleanor picked herself up, grasping her backsword and wondering what happened. She felt the floor shaking and grumbling. Eleanor looked up with a light gasp. The cavalry she had seen outside had finally arrived, horseshoes knocking against stone flooring like thunder, and many of the horses carrying lanterns of glowing fungus underneath their chests to light the way. The stampede of glowing horses frothed at the mouth, accompanied by men with lances, backswords and firearms.

Many horses leading the charge were shot by Black Sun riflemen, chests bursting open and gushing out blood, but some horses continued galloping despite being shot. Like their riders, the horses pumped with adrenaline, and did not stop. Moreover, guns designed to kill humans are not always enough to kill horses. The horses only fell if shot a few times at least, or if shot in the leg or head.

Taking up a vast space, the horses trampled Black Sun soldiers and beasts alike, or the breasts of the horses smashed them down. Some beasts countercharged, ramming their spears into the necks, heads, or legs of the horses, severely injuring the steed and toppling it, sending the rider diving to the floor. But then the next horseman simply struck the beast down! The horsemen spread apart, their warriors on foot who managed to survive running off to the sides and hoping not to get hit by their own cavalry.

Lancers couched their lances, driving them clean through beasts' bodies and brought them down. Lances that struck Black Sun armour failed to penetrate them, but the impact hurled them off their feet nonetheless.

Horsemen with backswords, using the speed of their mounts, swung with great force, hacking off arms and heads of Black Sun soldiers, and cleaving open the hides of the beasts. Horsemen with firearms used them, then slung their carbines or holstered their pistols to unsheathe swords and join in the fray.

Some beasts managed to jump onto horses, biting into them and bringing them down with their weight. Once fallen, multiple beasts would pile a horse and bite into it, others leaping upon fallen riders to prevent them from getting back up. But, the horsemen outnumbered the beasts, and many were able to fend off the reptilian creatures swarming downed cavalry.

Eleanor realized that some of the charging cavalrymen did not seem to view her as an ally, some leaning out their saddles and aligning a beheading. She raised her sword, seeing a charging horseman. This one wore a breastplate engraved with the face of a snarling jaguar, and he wore the pelt of jaguar. Unlike most other cavalrymen, he wielded an arming sword. He swung powerfully at Eleanor, assuming she was an enemy. She blocked his incoming swing and staggered from the blow. She parried several more swings aimed at her head from several other horsemen as they past her, one after the other, then swung her sword upward from below to knock away a lance.

The armoured car came driving back, machine gunner ripping through perhaps two dozen horses, firelocks shooting back at it but simply leaving small denting in its body. Many horses that saw the vehicle neighed and turned away from it, riders trying to control their mounts. The car even drove after fleeing horses, driving faster as the riders fired pistols at it. Catching up to horses, the car bumped into their back legs while steering side to side, knocking horses down while avoiding driving into them.

Eleanor regained her senses, sea slug doing its magic, her body regenerating. But, her one good eye widened as the horned behemoth came, each step shaking the flooring. The triceratops was still alive, the four cannoneers in the platform firing their swivel guns at the enemy. The dinosaur roared as it charged, beasts and Black Sun infantry running out of its way. Not even modern firearms were able to pierce the triceratops' hide.

Some beasts were too aggressive and too fearless, charging the dinosaur head-in, throwing spears at it. The dino's huge head withstood the spears, and smashed into the beasts in its way, knocking them down.

The armoured car returned, wheels screeching. Two cannoneers aimed their swivel guns at the car, firing at it. One cannonball bounced off the car's side and left a huge dent in it. The second smashed straight through the windshield and surely killed the passenger. The machine gunner fired as the car drove across the dinosaur's path, bullets poking holes in the dino's head and side, drawing blood. To their surprise, the triceratops turned and charged their car!

Eleanor sprang to action, hurling an electrobolt at the armoured car and shocking everyone in it; it subsequently slowed down. Electricity stopping the machine gunner from firing any further, the dino rammed its horned head into the vehicle's side and lifted it, causing it to tilt over and drive on two wheels.

After a couple seconds, the armoured car fell over, sliding on its side, a number of horsemen galloping around it and cheering its demise. In no time, beasts swarmed the fallen car, trying to dig into it and reach those inside.

"Who's next?" Eleanor exclaimed, then saw an old friend heading in her direction. Eleanor's mind focused as the cyborg ran toward her. He was no longer on fire from their previous engagement, but has been burned to a blackened crisp.

Just as he aimed at her, Eleanor performed a psychokinetic pull on his weapon but also threw her sword at him. Distracted by the thrown sword, Eleanor managed to make his gun fly out his hands! She caught it and started shooting at him with it, a pleased smile forming on her lips. Peculiarly, the man rolled sideways, avoiding the thrown sword and quantum gunfire, while unpinning a grenade and throwing it at Eleanor.

 _TELEPORT!_

Eleanor reappeared elsewhere and continued shooting at the man, but stopped once too many horsemen galloped in her line of sight to engage with beasts being shot at by Black Sun infantry. She looked around, and then saw him. He threw another grenade at her while charging, unsheathing his Bowie knife and machete in either hand. Eleanor darted off to the side, as did a few horsemen, to avoid the blast radius.

Eleanor aimed her gun and fired, but it seemed to overheat and malfunction, and just stopped shooting. The cyborg would reach her at any moment. So, she threw the gun at the man and bombarded him with fiery Plasmids. He continued charging nonetheless, unable to catch fire again; there was just metal, bones, and crispy flesh. Eleanor noticed a bright green glow emanating out the cyborg's wounds, reminding her of the green lighting of a Vita-Chamber.

EVE running low, Eleanor summoned a telekinetic burst at the cyborg, hurling him off his feet. She quickly picked up two backswords from fallen warriors, one for each hand, then charged the cyborg. The two clashed, Eleanor spinning around while swinging her sword. With every revolution she made, one sword would swing high, the other low. This way, she cut into the cyborg's face and shins, as well as intercept his attacks with her own cuts.

Bending both knees but keeping one foot forward, Eleanor used her left sword defensively, to parry the cyborg's machete, whilst using her right sword offensively, cutting into his face and metallic forearms. She would also skip backwards or sideways to stay out of trouble. Though, no matter what she did, her attacks did little.

 _Damn! This thing's tough!_

The cyborg kept performing huge, wide swings, and every time Eleanor blocked or parried, her swords gradually chipped away. She had to be in constant motion to avoid the Bowie knife, which was always ready to plunge into her or parry her own cuts. Concluding that she could not overpower the cyborg, Eleanor had to wait until her EVE recharged.

When enough EVE recharged, Eleanor cast an electrobolt out her fist, shocking the cyborg into helplessness. She then stepped forth, and, amassing a gravitational singularity, swung her backsword with as much gravity-powering force she could muster. Her sword blade snapped just above the hilt and the impact caused her to drop the sword, but the blow caused the cyborg to stagger and fall over. Eleanor's hand pulsated with pain.

Taking the advantage, Eleanor decided to do something different. Focusing all her remaining EVE, she levitated the cyborg, he swinging his machete and knife in the air like a bad marionette. She then raised her free hand, fingers outstretched, and then slowly curled her fingers inwards and pulled at the air.

The cyborg's head tilted back, and then everything inside of him slowly exited his mouth. Wires, loose teeth, sparks, some blood, and then shrivelled up organs gradually slipped out his mouth. Having gutted him, Eleanor dropped him, his burnt guts and cybernetic parts falling with him. The thing was finally offline.

Now that most of the fighting spread out, Eleanor could focus on the young woman in trouble. She ran towards the contraption again, seeing the Tear-based anomalies and electricity. The young woman shrieked, so Eleanor ran faster, skipping over dead people, horses and beasts.

However, fifteen Black Sun riflemen fell from above, landing clumsily, but still in Eleanor's way. They opened fire, so Eleanor hurled one of them with her telekinesis into another, knocking two down. She then ran to the side to avoid fire while hurling fireballs at them, and that was when a warrior galloped to the scene, firing what appeared to be a semi-automatic carbine. The riflemen fired back at him, but he did not seem to be injured by their bullets.

The warrior fired his carbine until the magazine was empty. His gun shot through the Black Sun armour, shooting nine of them dead. Slinging his carbine over his spaulder, the warrior galloped up close, jumping off his own horse while unsheathing a backsword. He landed atop one of the riflemen, pinning him to the floor, and then sliding his sword across his throat. The five remaining riflemen charged the warrior, intending to shoot at point-blank range, but Eleanor used an electrobolt to electrocute three, and then a psychokinetic blast to hurl two off their feet.

Without waiting, the warrior beheaded the three electrocuting soldiers in one swing. The two remaining soldiers thrust their bayonets at him, aiming for his unarmoured arms. He simply swung his sword upwards, cutting off one soldier's left forearm, then grabbing the other incoming rifle by the barrel, pulling it aside, and cut the soldier's head off. Before the dismembered soldier could react, the warrior sent another head flying off someone's shoulders.

She could not see his face behind his great helm, but Eleanor looked at him anyways, and he seemed to look back.

"What happened to your eye?" the warrior asked, surprising Eleanor, a cracked yellowish aura breifly appearing around the man.

"You can speak English?" she asked, then the two heard a woman scream, so the warrior ran off, armour clinking. Eleanor went with him.

The two reached the young woman soon enough, the two big spotlights pointing at either direction and motionless. The little lady remained entrapped by mechanical appendages while being electrocuted. The warrior sheathed his backsword, then threw his helm off.

" _Elizabeth!_ " he screamed, running towards her.

"B-Buh- _STOP!_ " the young woman cried out, but the warrior did not listen, and continued running. The woman cried again as the electrical shocks became unbearable. Every inhale she made was a wheeze, and every exhale, and scream. Teardrops leaked down her face.

"Don't damage the Enigma! Step away, now!" the voice from the intercom shouted again, but the warrior disobeyed, as did Eleanor.

Suddenly, several of the mechanical appendages lashed out at him, entwining around his neck and legs. He wrestled against the mechanical things, grunting and growling, but could not overcome them. Eleanor stepped in, using her psychokinesis to pull apart the mechanical things, freeing the warrior. He ran forth, grabbing the things trapping the girl and trying to rip them off her, but he just got caught in the stream of electricity. He shouted from pain.

Eleanor knew she had to act fast, but did not know what to do. She teleported a short distance away before several of those mechanical appendages could grab her. Eleanor then threw explosive, fiery Plasmids at the Tesla coils, destroying them one by one.

"The Enigma's constraints are being destroyed! All hands, evacuate! I repeat, all hands, evacuate now! Get out of there!" the intercom shouted.

Removed of its components, the contraption malfunctioned and broke down. The electric streams disappeared, and the mechanical appendages flopped down. The little lady sat up with a gasp, catching her breath. She wept quietly.

"Oh, god! Elizabeth!" the warrior exclaimed, grabbing the woman by the shoulder as she breathed hard, head and shoulders dropping. "Please, talk to me,"

"I'm...I'm...fine, really...I am..." the little lady assured between breaths. Once she controlled her breathing, she pointed at her back. "Take this thing out of me." One of the appendages was connected to her back.

"Oh? Yeah, I'll get that..." the warrior said, grasping the appendage attached to her back. "Uh...ready?"

"Yeah."

He ripped it out, the young woman screaming aloud. The warrior raised a hand apologetically. Even when her scream stopped, her grimace, furrowed eyebrows, closed eyes, wet face, and opened mouth clearly suggested agony.

" _Huhh-uuuhhhhhh_ -uhhhhnnnn..." the poor thing wheezed, eyes leaking tears.

The warrior looked at the end of the appendage. It consisting of several long, flexible, tapering things. The poor girl's back had an inch-thick hole, and the flesh around it was burned.

"Oh god, Elizabeth...what did they do to you?"

"I...I...I don't...know...don't wanna talk... about it..." she whimpered. She sharply inhaled through her nose, and seemed to regain herself.

Eleanor walked to them, both of them looking at her.

"What happened to your eye?" the young woman asked, still looking horrible.

"I got shot in the face. But you saved me with that Tear, thank you," Eleanor said. The young woman nodded, but also looked surprised. "You must be Elizabeth. One of the creatures told me your name and led me to you. Just in time to have helped you."

"Yeam... And thanks, for...for helping me save her," the warrior mumbled. Eleanor nodded to him with a cute smile.

"How do you know about Tears?" the little lady asked Eleanor, then looking up at the spherical Tear overhead.

"Back in New York, I heard a man named Zachary Comstock mention Tears like Elizabeth's," Eleanor explained, and all of a sudden, the two's staring became unfriendly.

"Wait...who are you? What do you want, girl?" the warrior asked sternly.

"What do I want? I want to go back to New York," Eleanor replied.

"Are you with Comstock?" the warrior demanded, Eleanor's eyebrows furrowing.

"Hm? Yes, he helped me. My mother is with him. I caught them having sex," Eleanor answered, expecting a chuckle, she herself snickering, but the man stared at her like he was considering killing her.

 _What?_

"Son of a _bitch..._ " the warrior cursed with short breath, placing a hand on his forehead. He let his arm drop and flared at Eleanor. "You so much even _think_ about taking her to him...and I will kill you, girl, even though you helped us."

Eleanor scowled, and she leaned into the man angrily. He did not relent.

"And you so much put your hands on me..." Eleanor spoke slowly, eyebrows furrowing, "and I'll make sure it's the last thing you'll ever do," she threatened. It was at this moment Eleanor realized that this man...looked exactly like Zachary, but had brown hair and green eyes. That revelation surprised Eleanor, her face showing it. The warrior remained stone-faced and unflinching.

Eleanor's surprised face must have done something to the warrior. His eyes lowered, and he slowly looked away. The little lady had painfully waddled beside the two, placing a hand on the man's shoulder, but she had already gotten his attention.

"Booker...please... Just calm down. Let's talk this over, " Elizabeth pleaded, tears still dripping down her face. The warrior's shoulders dropped.

"Okay... Now what? We stick with her, someone who works for Comstock?" Booker spat, Eleanor gave him a weird look.

"I don't work for Comstock. He helped me fight off the Pinkerton's. Were it not for him, the Pinkerton's may have killed me," Eleanor explained. Her words surprised Booker.

"The Pinkerton's are after him? Huh...serves him right. I hope they do him good," Booker remarked.

"Why is it that you...look exactly like him? Your voice is the same as his," Eleanor mentioned, Booker taking that as an insult.

"Pff-huh... Clearly, you've never seen the guy."

"Yes I did, actually. You're the one who's never seen him," Eleanor said. Booker dismissively waved his arm at Eleanor, then noticed Elizabeth looking up at the spherical Tear.

"What is it?"

"That Tear... It's different," Elizabeth said, intrigued.

"Hunh? How?" Booker asked.

"Well, it's... It's not a window. It's a...sphere? I think, I think... I think I can... Let me think..." Elizabeth said, raising her hands.

Trotting sounded. Eleanor and Booker turned, seeing a few dozen horsemen coming by, armours bloodied. The fighting had silenced, but echoes of bombs from outside lingered.

"We have done it. The Kondrikai and their Shadow Warriors here have fled deeper into the temple, and Black Sun are routed," one of the horsemen said.

This horseman was slightly more heavily armoured than the others. He also had vambraces and gorget. Sheathed at his sides were arming sword and Bowie knife. His breastplate had an engraving of a snarling jaguar's face, and he also wore the pelt of a jaguar down over his backplate, forelegs hanging down over his shoulders. He was definitely a leader of sorts, and Eleanor recalled parrying his sword during the cavalry charge!

Booker nodded to him.

"Thanks, _Captain_ Hreira," Booker said. The man he spoke to chuckled.

" _Nar'sheb mar'e!_ You've finally remembered. I would make you a _ver'alor_ if you stayed in my army!" the warrior exclaimed. Booker chuckled.

"So, some of them do speak English," Eleanor remarked.

"English? You mean Angelski. A dialect of the Armanen, and the language of Black Sun. But both our enemies," the captain replied, then paused, as if thoroughly examining Eleanor. He then scanned the battlefield, seeing many corpses, but did not seem troubled.

"Elizabeth?" Booker called, seeing the petite lady now holding the spherical Tear.

"What is that, anyways?" Captain Hreira asked.

"It's a Tear. But...it's a...special kind of Tear. It's...contained?" Elizabeth mumbled, moving her hands around the Tear as if a crystal ball. She then looked around at the ancient machinery, Eleanor slowly walking around and also having a look.

"It looks like a..." Eleanor said, and then Elizabeth opened the spherical Tear.

The spherical Tear erupted powerfully, causing many horses to rear and neigh. The Tear opened in a fixed shape, expanding over the machinery until the entirety of the machines and their parts was enveloped. The Tear continued growing along the cables throughout the pyramid as well. No longer was the machinery ancient and ugly, but looked repaired, albeit with greyscale. The machinery seemed to stretch up into the ceiling and branch out into various narrow passageways.

"I...I can't believe it..." Elizabeth said, then closed the Tear. The machinery now appeared brand new, and the spherical Tear reappeared, floating on its own as it used to. The immense machinery hummed with life, electrical operations within glass and the Tesla coils illuminating the area.

The horsemen were confused, unsure of what they were beholding. Some echoes of cannon fire shook the pyramid.

"It's a...but... I can see behind so many doors..." Elizabeth said, lost in thought. "This is a, a..."

"A Lutece machine," Eleanor finished, crossing her arms, "from the past."


	26. Chapter 26 - Convergence Delayed

"And what is that, exactly?" Captain Hreira asked, overlooking the machinery.

"A Lutece device," Elizabeth answered, moving her hand over some controls. "Hunh... I've had plenty of time to read _Barriers to Trans-Dimensional Travel,_ which explained how such machines worked, but this is much more complex in person..." Elizabeth said to herself, walking along the machinery and having a look at the various controls and features. She looked back up to the spherical Tear, but could not understand how it worked.

"Elizabeth, how's your back?" Booker asked.

"I'm alright."

"You sure?"

"I'm fine, Booker. Let me see if I can just figure this out..."

"Will it take us back...to Columbia?" Booker asked, keeping an eye out on those mechanical appendages that had entrapped Elizabeth. They appeared inactive, but Booker had a bad feeling.

"I don't know, but I think I can try opening a Tear," Elizabeth answered. She grabbed at the air, and huffed. Nothing. She tried again. Nothing, again. " _Ughh!_ I still can't do it. Ever since we came to this world, my access to Tears is inconsistent."

"Speaking of Tears, how do you do them? My men reported you being able to summon blurry forces," Hreira spoke, most of his soldiers chatting in the background, or walking around making sure lying bodies were dead.

"Well, it's a form of wish fulfilment when I get anxious. They just happen. Not now, though," Elizabeth answered, looking up at the spherical Tear again. "Hmm... If this Tear is a portion of a reality, but contained, then...it was set up long ago... This Tear has been floating by itself for thousands of years..." Elizabeth whispered to herself, trying to figure it out. She could sense the doors, and what was behind the doors, but doing so was difficult, blurry.

"If the machine can't help us, we move on," Booker said.

"Huh. Well, I'm sure this machine _can_ help us," Eleanor said, stepping forth and working on the controls.

"How? You know how to work it?" Booker grumbled.

Eleanor paused, turned her head, and gave him a mean look with her one eye.

"Yes, actually. I helped build one in London with Robert and Rosalind."

Elizabeth's lips parted, and Booker had a look of disbelief.

"You did?" Elizabeth and Booker asked at the same time, Eleanor nodded.

"But...how?" Elizabeth asked.

"It's a long story. Let's just say I'm pretty smart for a sixteen-year-old," Eleanor replied, experimenting with the machine's various controls. "This is similar to what I helped build, but quite...retro. Just give me a few minutes, and I'll have this figured out."

"Huh... Well, she's British, of course she's smart," Booker mumbled as Eleanor worked away.

 _Why does everyone think I'm British..._

"Yes, she...she really is smart for a sixteen-year-old. Heh heh..." Elizabeth agreed, watching the teenager experimenting with the many complex configurations and things.

"She's younger, taller, _and_ smarter than you, Elizabeth. Cuter, too," Booker rubbed in, Elizabeth crossing her arms, her intrigued mood disappearing.

"Har har."

As Eleanor worked away, she occasionally saw Booker checking her out. Even with just one eye, she could sense what he was up to. He was quite the rugged fellow, not in Eleanor's tastes, but that serious, rockhard look was alluring in its own way. Eleanor stroked her hair a bit, and continued working.

Booker could not help but stare at Eleanor. He felt like...he knew her? As if they had already met? But when, where?

Soon, the machine hummed louder, and produced an electric field, which took Booker out of his mental questioning. Zaps and sparks sometimes appeared here and there throughout the machinery.

Many of the soldiers stepped away from the strange contraption. Hreira kept a fixed pair of eyes on the machinery.

Elizabeth watched Eleanor work, impressed by the girl's abilities, and height. Slowly tilting her head, Elizabeth made a small smile, enjoying the tall girl's work. Eleanor noticed with her one eye.

"What?" Eleanor asked while Booker checked her out from her other side, something she did not notice. Elizabeth blinked, snapping out of her little mesmerization.

"Oh, nothing, I, uh...just...really want to get out of here," Elizabeth replied, eyes low, face blushing. She stroked her hair back, breathing slowly. Eleanor wasn't sure what her problem was, but continued working.

"You know what?" Booker asked, the two brunettes looking at him, "You two look alike."

Eleanor and Elizabeth looked at each other for a moment, then back to Booker.

"No," the two girls chirped at the same time. Booker chuckled, and Elizabeth smiled. It was so rare to see Booker smile, even if for a second.

"Well, you both have dark hair, big blue eyes, smooth faces, milky skin... Really look like sisters," Booker explained. Elizabeth smiled, lowering head, raising a hand to her mouth and thinking to herself.

"But her face is a bit more chiselled. I'm...hah, hah...quite baby-faced."

"It's okay, your face looks good on you," Elizabeth complimented. Ironic, considering Eleanor's shirt and face were rather cut up from all the fighting.

"I know," Eleanor said nonchalantly, then focused on the machinery. "Just a few more adjustments..." She seemed to figure out the contraption, and activated it.

By the wall of the pyramid, the underside of the top of the Lutece device heated up, and the machine whirred and groaned, shaking the pyramid. Blue electricity zapped ferociously around the Lutece device, and a radiating, rippling Tear formed. However, this Tear was quite big, taking up the entire space within the Lutece device, and gradually became spherical.

" _Wayii!_ What in the hell is that?" Hreira exclaimed, many of the soldiers having a similar reaction.

"A Tear, I think. Remember when I explained them to you? If this is a Tear, it might be our way back home," Booker said.

"Hm. A _rugam_ Tear..." Hreira mumbled.

"It works..." Elizabeth whispered, and then stepped back, as something different happened.

The new Tear shot forth, passing Elizabeth and Eleanor, and wobbling around randomly. It sometimes floated into the previous spherical Tear, but the two balls just bounced. Eight tubes writhed out the new Tear, each tubular extension writhing into the Tesla coils. The tubular extensions snaked continuously.

The soldiers took more steps away from the strange apparitions, many horses nickering or whinnying. Only Elizabeth, Booker and Eleanor remained amidst the strange Tears for now.

"Elizabeth, these Tears aren't like the ones we've seen..." Booker said.

"I know, but, but..." Elizabeth hesitated. She slowly raised her hands, and the Tear-ball lowered onto them. She stared into the giant extradimensional sphere, and it seemed to be staring back at her. Inside was just bright light, reminding her of stars.

Inside, Elizabeth could see many worlds, and reflections of worlds. Like mirrors facing each other with three-dimensional images, the sights Elizabeth saw were endless in all directions, yet every one was different.

"So, will we be going back to our world, or what?" Booker asked.

"Yes, Booker, we'll be going back. Hah! I just need to find it..."

"So that is your passage back to your world... We knew our ancestral pyramids were mysterious, but never would have guessed that they contained such powers. Black Sun must have been trying to learn them," Captain Hreira said.

He dismounted his horse, took his helm off and carried in under his left arm, and walked towards Booker. As he walked through the tubular Tears, they lifted, as if not wanting to be touched by him.

"It was an honour to fight by your side, _Ruus'alor_ Booker, but I consider you an _ori'ramikad:_ a supercommando." Hreira struck his gauntleted right hand against his breastplate, then grabbed Booker's hand and shook it strongly. Both men kept eye contact.

"We will forever remember you as a dangerous enemy and a true comrade. _Ret'urcye mhi_ , Booker."

All the soldiers raised their weapons, their way of showing respect.

"Goodbye, Captain Hreira," Booker said. The two nodded, and let go. Hreira walked back to his men.

Meanwhile, Elizabeth continued thinking about the giant Tear. She did not know what it could be, but she felt something going into her body, her eyes, her mind, her thoughts... She soon saw the reflection of one world, and she could see herself, holding up the spherical Tear, the other sphere floating above it. Booker and Elizabeth kept looking around, unsure of what to do.

"Alright...can you take me back to my world, too?" Eleanor asked.

"Yes, I can, just let me..." Elizabeth said, and then one of the mechanical appendages arose from the floor. The tip formed a bright red light, beaming into Elizabeth's eyes. Her face went limp, and she seemingly felt herself zooming...into herself?

Her sight seemed to travel into the reflection of herself, and she heard a noise that sounded like resonating ripping, similar to when she opened Tears. She saw her irises, then the veins in her eyes, then her pupils, then brain, neural circuits, individual neurons...and then, electrical currents. As her vision slowly zoomed out, she beheld sights she never even dreamed of.

The vision was quite extreme, constantly shaking, and feeling like fire in Elizabeth's eyes and face. She saw lots of raining red, blood, perhaps, dropping from a sky of Tears. Strange machinery descended from the sky of Tears, swaying like suspended chains. Below the sky of Tears, an ocean of bubbling redness. An ocean of boiling blood? Machinery arose from the depths of the boiling blood, connecting into the machinery descending from the sky of Tears.

The machinery connected between the sky and ocean, growing into the shape of neural networks. The mechanical parts slowly burst open, revealing beating hearts, pumping lungs, eyeballs looking around, brains, veins transporting blood, spinal cords, dangling nerves, and fleshy masses, squeezing through the cracked machinery.

" _Elizabeth!_ " Booker yelled, Elizabeth snapping out of her hypnosis, slapping aside the red-lighted appendage with a gasp.

Elizabeth collapsed onto her bum, knees flopping to the floor. She held her forehead, wondering what happened. She heard heavy static and tuning noises coming from around her, the mechanical appendages distorting, becoming greyscale. The eight mechanical limbs that constituted the contraption arose all around Elizabeth, moving inwards like a spider's legs. Yet, oddly enough, no one reacted to it.

In front of Elizabeth, a man-sized mechanical thing emerged, resembling the legs of a spider, or an eight-fingered hand with long, tapering, black fingers. At the centre was a large red lens, reminding her of one of Songbird's eyes. Just like the greyscale machinery, no one reacted to this giant eyed hand. Booker was walking through them as if they did not exist for him, sternly making sure the appendages were dead, and Eleanor examined the area.

The big red eye focused on Elizabeth, internal parts spiralling to get a better look at her. She looked back, feeling like her heart was going to burst through her chest. The red eye beamed red light upon her, causing blood to steadily drip out the centre of the lens, yet no one else reacted to any this.

 _This is a door...a frequency...that only affects me..._ Elizabeth thought to herself.

"Elizabeth... You have become quite the annoyance," a deep, gurgly, grinding, resonating voice spoke. She could not say anything, paralyzed by the sheer staring of this entity. She felt blood trickling out her nose, and then the veins in her eyes and under her skin glowed yellow. "Not even I could get around the prophecy foreshadowing your destiny."

 _What? I... I don't know anything... I, I just...what's going on? What did I do?_ Elizabeth thought.

"You will know everything you must, eventually."

 _Uhh... What do you want from me? Please, just stop staring at me..._ Her eyes entirely glowed yellow now, and her own flesh formed a yellowish aura. She felt blood amassing in her mouth, but she swallowed hard, the iron tinge of blood stinging her taste buds.

"Ah, dear little Elizabeth... When I lost you so long ago, I crossed oceans of time to search for you. I could not find you. And now, here you are. After all this time, when my will plunged into the abyss, you now came to me, a glimmer of hope..." the entity spoke, tilting side to side. "I was quite an old fool. I should have known that, no matter how hard I tried, I would not be able to find you on my terms; I cannot supercede a constance. After all, the ocean currents would, inevitably, lead you where you had to go, no matter how many whirlpools or tsunamis disrupted the ocean."

 _I-I, I, I just don't understand... What are you?_

"What am I? I think you instead must ask yourself that question. Ah, wait, I see... You are not the Elizabeth I was expecting. You have not yet destroyed the Cipher, and so it is, you were unable to realize your full potential. But, this will have to do."

 _What's happening? Please, let me go..._ Elizabeth asked, feeling Booker waving his arm in front of her face, but she did not react to him. She could not even hear him yelling at her.

"It seems that people awoke the Enigma with their presence. My machines...they can sense Tears, and those connected to them. You had fallen into the embrace of the Enigma, and those who awoke Her were too afraid to approach you despite your suffering. But then, someone else destroyed the coils of my machine. The Enigma noticed, and then the coils reverted to their past state. Now, the Enigma is fully aware something is amiss. The Enigma, Elizabeth... She is thinking, She is coming, She is starving... She is waiting for you."

 _Let me go! Let me go!_ Elizabeth screamed at the walls of her mind.

"Very well, this exchange will be over. The Tear will allow you to go far away from the Enigma, so that you can have a headstart. I did, after all, leave the Tear behind for this moment. Oh, and my machine will play you a special song, this will allow you to enter my Tear without further ado..." The entity's red eye closed.

In her debilitated state, Elizabeth struggled to do anything, but Booker grabbed her arms and lifted her up, shaking her. Eleanor walked by, wondering what was going on. Gradually, Elizabeth's glowing yellow eyes and body diminished. The greyscale machinery tuned out of this reality, reverting to its original, inactive state.

"Elizabeth! You there!" Booker yelled; Elizabeth shook her head, regaining herself, blood drenching her cleavage and shirt. "Oh, thank god... I thought you died."

"Booker? I..." Elizabeth whimpered, catching her breath, "we need to enter the Tear," she said, but then the spherical Tear shot upwards, the tubular Tears snaking after it.

The spherical Tear erupted against the ceiling, covering it with greyscale and rippling effects. Ripping sounds reverberated throughout the pyramid, and the ceiling peeled open, revealing a bright yellow sun directly above. The tubular Tears continued snaking into the sky. The shaking, and the pyramid ripping apart, frightened the soldiers and their horses.

"What the hell's going on!" Booker shouted, "Elizabeth! Stop the Tear! Or whatever the hell it is!"

"I can't!" Elizabeth yelled back, the shaking intensifying, everyone having to spread their arms and bend their knees to stabilize themselves.

The tubular Tears seemed to rip into the fabric of space-time, creating a massive black Tear that covered the sun. The sun now looked like a giant, smouldering, dark mass, as if shedding shadows instead of light. An immediate night-time came as a result.

Then, the Lutece device ringed aloud, playing a simple song. The notes were played slowly but loudly, thusly: C, A, G, E.

Off in the distance, something huge was breaking through trees, causing the jungles to shake and echo of splintering wood. Then, it broke through the canopy, shrieking with such intensity, its cries reverberated throughout the skies. The cries soon reached the pyramid, Elizabeth and everyone else looking up.

"That sounds like..." Elizabeth whispered, not having to finish her sentence, as the silhouette of an old friend appeared, diving into the pyramid, eyes red.

"Dammit! Here he comes again!" Captain Hreira shouted.

Dozens of soldiers raised their muskets and fired, but what would their firelocks do against the big buzzard?

" _Booker!_ " Elizabeth screamed as he grabbed her and held her tight.

Eleanor threw a fireball at the incoming winged behemoth, Booker casting Shock Jockey at it. Nevertheless, it slammed down with great force, knocking many off their feet. Songbird powerfully but safely grabbed Elizabeth around the waist. She extended her arm to Booker who reached out to her, but the bird took off, Elizabeth feeling her blood rush down her body.

" _Elizabeth!_ " Booker screamed.

Instinctively, Eleanor teleported, reappearing on the back of the behemoth's neck. Gripping it tightly, she formed fiery Plasmids through her palms, but even so, this did nothing. Songbird noticed something on his neck, so he spun around while flying, and Eleanor promptly fell. She teleported back to the flooring in the temple.

"Well, that didn't work..." Eleanor mumbled with a shrug.

Eleanor and Booker saw Songbird fly into one of the tubular Tears snaking upward. Instantly, Songbird got sucked into the Tear, then reappeared as if hurled out by great force, Elizabeth flying across into another snaking Tear and disappearing again.

The tubular Tears began lifting, several vanishing into others. It was only a matter of time before all the snake Tears vanished. Booker and Eleanor had an idea what the next step was.

"Nothing to lose now!" Booker exclaimed, running towards one of the tubular Tears.

" _Ret'urcye mhi_ , _Ori'ramikad_ Booker!" Hreira called.

"So long, pal!" Booker yelled back, then charged into the snake Tear, already feeling himself being sucked into it. "Aww- _wwwww_ shhhit!" He was pulled upwards a few dozen feet, and soon disappeared into the tubular Tear.

"Alright, my turn," Eleanor said, but then she saw something big, apparently sitting atop the machinery. It looked like a glowing nervous system, and blended in well with the electrical zaps everywhere. "Ah, you..." Eleanor commented with a little smile.

" _Ponoq, nemon,_ " Eleanor's guide said, which she figured meant _Goodbye, friend._

"Goodbye, friend," Eleanor replied with a nod, and then ran into the Tear. It pulled her up and she disappeared. Her friend silently took his leave as well, having finished what he promised to Elizabeth, even though she would never know it happened.

"There they go, back to their world, where they belong," Captain Hreira commented, then turned to face his men. " _Verda! Mhi tsikador par akaan, mhi akaanir!_ _K'oyacyi!_ " he shouted. All his men roared their battle cries and began their leave of the pyramid, bringing all the wounded with them, bloodied triceratops trudging along.

Always ready for battle, they would continue their wars against Black Sun and the Kondrikai as it always was for thousands of years!


	27. Ch 27 - Cross-reality Synchronization

Falling through nighttime. That's what Booker felt, and then landed hard on...a giant airship? His armour, serving as a metal shell over padding, helped absorb some falling damage. The craft was quite gigantic, and had some sort of platform atop it with Sky-Lines and a mezzanine-like extension beneath them. Picking himself up, Booker turned around, seeing some sort of electrical, glowing machine.

Harsh tuning and static noises reverberated throughout his skull, causing blood to leak out his nose. He wiped the blood off, looked at his fingers for a second, then at the glowing machine.

"A generator? Wait, what about the...Siphon?" Booker mumbled to himself, not sure what was going on. He did not know why, but he knew that there was something called the Siphon. A rush of memories swarmed in his head, confusing him. After all, how often did people suddenly warp to the last level from the beginning?

Booker looked up, seeing a big black-and-white picture of some Narcissistic-looking middle-aged woman at the top of the zeppelin. The text above read _Virgo Sponsa Dei_. Below read _Infandum, Regina, jubes Renovare Dolorem_.

"Lady Comstock? Huh... Well, at least we're back in Columbia," Booker said to himself. "Elizabeth? Elizabeth!" Booker called, but could not see Songbird anywhere. "Aw, shhhit... That buzzard must have taken her away somewhere. Dammit!" he cursed, then looked to the side, seeing Eleanor land on her feet like a cat.

"Oh, hello!" Eleanor chirped, then the two looked up.

The blackness of the sky was, well, quite black, not even starlight visible. In fact, the entirety of the night sky seemed to be smouldering blackness, similarly to the black sun they had witnessed in the previous world.

"Well, that's different," Booker mumbled.

"Huh. It is."

The two then looked off to the side, seeing skyscrapers far away.

"That looks like..." Booker said slowly.

"New York," Eleanor answered.

"No, it can't be. It's way too gigantic. New York was never _that_ big."

"Then how do you explain the Statue of Liberty?" Eleanor suggested.

"Well, wait... No, then... This isn't the world I came from," Booker said, thinking of his conversations with Elizabeth. "But then, why is Columbia here?"

"Columbia?"

"All these airships, they make up a flying city. Comstock called it Columbia."

"You mean these giant zeppelins?" Eleanor asked, Booker nodded. She never heard of Columbia as a flying city, but British Columbia and Colombia came to mind. Columbia took her by surprise. "Huh. I wonder what's going on?"

"...But what about the strange night sky? It looks like black fire," a man mumbled from the darkness, clearly spooked.

"Must be what the Sainted Lady spoke of. Do not fear anything, our souls are ready." another man said.

Eleanor and Booker looked at the other side. They were approached by several soldiers wearing thickly padded blue uniforms, steel helmets, and rather modern-looking weapons. A few of them wore goggles, bullet belts, or thicker armour. One of the men wore a black robe, the hood pointed and having cut eye-holes. Dangling over his chest was a sword-like crucifix, and hanging down his back, a coffin?

"I'm Eleanor, we don't want any trouble," Eleanor said, the soldiers not alarmed. She looked at Booker, who had a stern face, as if wondering if he should attack or not.

"Who are you? How did you get here? Were you born from the Sodom Below?" one of the soldiers asked.

"What? No, I was born in Rapture, a city at the bottom of the Atlantic ocean," Eleanor answered, and all of a sudden, the soldiers stared at her not knowing what to say.

Before Eleanor or Booker could say anything else, they heard crows cawing and flapping. The robed man suddenly reappeared beside Booker, grabbing his right arm and pulling the gauntlet off.

"The False Shepard has returned! Kill them!" the robed man screamed, unsheathing a sword and then unleashing a flock of angry crows at Eleanor and Booker. Booker ripped his arm free of the Zealot's grip, withdrawing his Sky-Hook from his belt, quickly slipping it over his right hand, and striking the incoming sword aside. He then rammed the Sky-Hook into the Zealot's neck, the little machine wheezing, and cracking the Zealot's neck.

Reacting quickly herself, Eleanor unleashed a telekinesis burst, throwing the soldiers off their feet, feeling crows pecking and clawing her scalp. She growled, releasing another wave of psychokinesis and hurling the birds away. As the soldiers picked themselves, Eleanor unleashed another telekinetic burst upon them, causing them to fly down the deck with such force they lost their firearms.

A few zeppelins pointed spotlights upon Eleanor and Booker, somehow realizing the danger. Some sort of PA honked aloud.

"Intruders spotted on the Hand of the Prophet! All gunships, reinforce the flagship!" the PA boomed, the voice of a man.

"Looks like I'm not done with Columbia yet!" Booker exclaimed, unslinging his carbine and reloading it, watching as a few super gunships flew towards the giant zeppelin he stood on. The sounds of heavy footfall echoed from below as well; many personnel were running towards the deck.

"Seems like we both have a knack for getting into trouble!" Eleanor exclaimed, already hearing gunfire echoing in the skies. She went to work, unleashing explosive fireballs akin to the Plasmids of Big Sisters at the super gunships, Booker also shooting at his attackers, the two causing havoc amongst the onboard soldiery!

* * *

Back in New York, Elizabeth awoke in her suite at one of the top floors in Hotel Pennsylvania, sitting up in her bed with a gasp. Her hair was messy. She flipped the blankets off and swung her legs over, then paused, feeling her heart pounding. She just wore a bra and panties, too lazy to have changed into pyjamas. Elizabeth inhaled, paused, then slowly exhaled, calming down. Her head and shoulders dropped, and she placed a hand on her forehead.

"Still having nightmares about Songbird?" she whispered to herself with a chuckle, then plopped back into bed, and fell back asleep. A few seconds later, she awoke to her radio clock, red numbers flashing 2:15 AM.

"Uhh...already?" she groaned, rolling over and extending a sleepy arm towards the clock, inadvertently knocking over a bottle of cognac from the nightstand. Just as it seemed she would switch the clock off, she instead grabbed a pack of cigs, accidentally knocking the clock over in the process. The clock hit the floor, landing beside the fallen cognac bottle, and continued wailing like a mechanical baby.

Putting a cigarette in her lips, Elizabeth sat up again, looking for her lighter. Elizabeth's hands shook as she flicked her lighter alight, desperately wanting to satisfy her cravings. She inhaled as she tried to light her cigarette, her shaking hands making everything worse. After a few seconds, she finally managed to light her cig, and promptly consumed a mouthful of smoking nicotine. Even after exhaling the smoke, her hand tremors remained, as did the screaming clock. She threw it at the wall, unplugging midair.

"Let me smoke in peace..." Elizabeth muttered. She took her cig out, then pawed for her bottle of cognac. Raising it to her lips, she waited until some creamy drops fell. A few drops of alcohol was better than nothing.

Once her smoke was halfway done, Elizabeth headed to the bathroom. She put her shaky hands on the sink and looked at herself in the mirror. Sleepy face, wrinkles due to narrowing blood vessels, eye bags, dark circles, depression, anxiety...

 _Terrible._

Her eyes and chin lowered. She looked down at her pretty little arms, seeing the sore red marks at the inside of her wrist and elbow, the injuries of her personal battles. She looked away from the mirror, staring at her little friends on the side of the sink: an arm strap, a needle, a powdered spoon, a little bag...

The urge came. She went to grab the little bag, but accidentally knocked it over. She gasped as the little bag fell down, hitting the floor and spilling a handful of white powder.

"Aw, dammit!" Elizabeth growled, cigarette falling out her mouth, "Aw, fuck!"

She bent over to start tidying up the little mess, face locked on a scowl. She grinded her teeth together so much her jaw hurt. She did what she could to sweep the powder back into the bag, but most of the contents just didn't listen. When she lifted her head, she hit it against the sink, and dropped the bag.

" _Ahh!_ " Elizabeth growled through clenched teeth, her eyes and fists shut tight. Rubbing the back of her head, she bent over again to salvage what she could of her second little accident. She then paused, and realized something.

 _I'm clawing at a bathroom floor for cocaine I spilt..._ Elizabeth thought to herself, and that really hurt her. Her heart skipped a beat. She shut her eyes tightly and furrowed her eyebrows. But, the heat and pain in her eyes came. Hot tears trickled down her face.

Elizabeth sniffled. She did not know why, but this was her lowest moment, and it hurt. She felt more pathetic now than when Comstock's doctors tortured her. Even abandoning Sally was easier than this.

 _Because it's easier to be a fucking bitch._ She picked up her cigarette, slowly stood up. She just stared at herself in the mirror, face red, eyes redder, tears leaking.

"What did I turn myself into?" Elizabeth softly asked herself, and again paused for a couple seconds. She did not like what she had become. She smoked her cigarette, but the nicotine did nothing.

Elizabeth's head and shoulders dropped. She felt her short cigarette smoke up her face. She tossed her cig into the toilet, then in a fit of anger, smacked the needle and spoon away, hearing them fall into the bathtub. She washed her face, and took another look at herself in the mirror.

 _Still terrible._

 _But still gorgeous, too._ That thought made her feel better, and despite a teary face, she chuckled at herself. Even though her face was not as pretty as it used to be, she was still gorgeous, right? She made a little smile while thinking about herself. _Time for another cigarette, then!_

After using the bathroom and getting mostly dressed, Elizabeth fetched her second cig for the morning. She began buttoning up her shirt while heading to the window. She opened it up, inhaling a mouthful of smoke, then looked down to finish buttoning up her shirt. Looking out the window again, she paused, eyes widening, mouth opening, cigarette falling out. A big fiery rocket was flying from the sky, and heading straight towards her.

Elizabeth dove to the side, hearing the rocket slam into her suite with a mighty explosion. As the dust and debris settled, Elizabeth got up, covered with dust, and looked out the hole in the wall. She saw silhouettes of giant airships in the night sky, and weirder than that, the night sky appeared like smouldering blackness. The echoes of rocketry and naval guns thundered throughout the skies. Columbia began its bombardment of New York, various skyscrapers soon flaming and smoking.

Elizabeth quickly ran to the closet, checking her coat, seeing her holstered revolver hanging from the closet as well. She put her holstered revolver on her belt, then put her coat on, hiding her gun beneath it. She then quickly fetched her pack of cigs, putting it and the lighter in her pockets. Can't forget cigarettes, anything else?

"It seems you better hurry..." a man advised, causing Elizabeth to pause.

Elizabeth slowly turned her head. There he stood, arms somewhat spread apart but bent at the elbows, palms bored and revealing bones and tendons, eye sockets empty and bleeding...

" _Nyeh heh-heh-heh-heh heh heh heh hehh hehhh!_ " Michael cackled.

Rather spooked, Elizabeth unlocked her door and burst out the room. She ran down the hallway as fast as she could, no easy task in a mini skirt and high-heels! She could hear the many guests of the hotel already panicking at what was going on.

Heart racing, and feeling the very building rumble, Elizabeth ran down the stairs. The echoes of cityscape-wide panic and bombardment became louder and louder, and occasionally, something exploded against Hotel Pennsylvania.

As she descended in fear and uncertainty, Elizabeth saw Michael again, leaning against the wall casually, his arms crossed. He lifted his chin and gave Elizabeth an eyeless stare, then grinned, blood leaking in-between his teeth.

"Next time, consider renting a room at a lower floor, maybe?" Michael suggested as Elizabeth ran past him.

Eventually, more and more guests decided to ditch their rooms and flee. Unsurprisingly, the elevators were busy. Elizabeth did not even bother trying to use them, sticking to the stairs as the building shook more and more. After an explosion, she heard a group of people scream as their elevator malfunctioned and plummeted down the shaft.

Elizabeth felt her heart rise to her throat. More and more people began screaming, becoming almost as loud as the bombardment. She continued her descent, and saw Michael again, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, again, but again, she ignored him. It was not long until she saw him, yet again, his eyeless stare following her.

"...Drown in flame the mountains of Man..."

Elizabeth scowled at him, even though he could not see her. She continued her race down the hotel, and saw him again.

"Some men dream of money," Michael said as Elizabeth ran past him.

A while later, he saw him, yet again.

"Some men dream of love."

She didn't listen, she kept going. No matter how loud the panic became, Elizabeth could always hear him just fine. As she ran down the hotel more and more, she routinely saw Michael here and there.

"Your father dreamt of a flood of fire, a rapture from the baptism of flames..."

"Given Eden, turned into Sodom... Unworthy of salvation or utopia...blah, blah, blah..."

"Adonai allowed Noah to build a boat to survive a flood."

"But what does He give to survive fire?"

"Perhaps you must become a burning bush that does not succumb to its own flames?"

"After all, you could see all that would be..."

"You really were greater than your father in this case, unsurprisingly!"

"He wanted to see you rapture to your potential, your fate..."

"But when he realized his mistakes, he never wanted you to be like him, did he?"

"Suffering, either physical or psychological, truly destroys hope, hmm?"

"But suffering is its own baptism and its own rapture, isn't it?"

"And when this world is baptized..."

"Well, let's just say that it is one world out of millions."

"Truly I tell you, Elizabeth, this is the last world you belong in that awaits such baptism."

"Tomorrow, the leash comes off..."

"And Enigma shall be the rapture from the baptism of this last world..."

Elizabeth felt the hotel breaking apart. She could see the exit up ahead, streets outside a fiery mess of burning vehicles and fleeing people. A crowd of guests had formed, falling over each other, crushing each other, and so blocking the exit in their panic. Elizabeth thumped to a halt; there was no way out through so many bodies. Elizabeth looked up, seeing the ceiling crack open and collapse. People everywhere screaming as tonnes of concrete came crashing down.

The collapsing building crushed hundreds of people, then flowed out onto the streets, raining debris upon cars and fleeing people. After a few seconds, a Tear appeared, and Elizabeth jumped out. Brushing herself off, she made her way over the debris, quite frightened, but alive.

She looked up, seeing the zeppelin flotilla high in the night sky, raining fiery death upon New York. Her area was hit especially hard, a majority of the flotilla targetting Manhattan.

To make things worse, the night sky unfurled with electric chaos. The smouldering blackness created thunder and bolts of lightning, reminding Elizabeth of when... When she waited for Booker to rescue her. At that thought, she stopped moving. Amidst chaos, Elizabeth just thought of her memories. Throwing Salts, guns, bandages and ammo to Booker, flipping coins to him, talking to him about Dimwit and Duke, imagining him on the carousel, baptizing him... Such memories caused Elizabeth's head and shoulders to drop.

"B-B-Booker... I-I-I h-have to g-g-go b-back to him. He's still my only...hope..." Elizabeth whimpered, finding it hard to admit that fact. She looked back up at the aerial bombardment, and realized something. "I... I am _not_ afraid... Okay, let's do this, all over again," she said to herself, finding courage.

"Please, work, please... Just one more time, please..." She grasped at the air, and pulled it apart. She smiled as another Tear formed. It would take her to the Pinkerton compound in northern Manhattan.

Elizabeth reappeared in a hallway of containment cells, where experiments of 'lab rats' took place. To her surprise, everything was empty, looking like a riot had broken through. Bewildered, Elizabeth carefully walked down the hallway. She withdrew her big, shiny revolver, holding it in both hands.

"What happened? Doesn't look like Columbia blasted it open yet..." Elizabeth whispered to herself. She checked the area, seeing the various medical equipment, reminding her of the tortures she had to endure. Unpleasant memories for sure.

She saw a static Tear near one of the seats, and approached it. She listened, and looked. The Tear revealed Zachary, strapped to a chair, with doctors performing various medical tests on him.

The Tear revealed other phases of the operations. The doctors took his blood, and studied his genes with telescopes and computers. He was always conscious, treated like a bag of meat to test on. He looked uncomfortable, but took everything with a straight face.

Elizabeth walked on, until she saw another Tear. It revealed Elizabeth standing by and watching the experiments. The experimentation was not too severe, but Zachary was hooked up to various equipment, arms and neck covered with needles. Whenever he tried to move, he felt needles tug at his skin or poke deeper into him.

"Remember, Comstock, this isn't even half of what you did to me," Elizabeth said back then. "But when you lose a lot of blood, you'll know how much it hurts. You won't sleep, you'll sit there in pain, exhausted and wrecked... Your entire body will be numb from needles sucking you dry."

Elizabeth's eyes lowered. She holstered her gun, then crossed her arms.

The next scene, "...Yes, the genetic recoding has partly worked. EVE has been imprinted into his genes. His body can now slowly regenerate EVE, and generate ADAM on his own, too," one doctor said.

"Good. He will need ADAM to survive, and stay normal, but overdosing will deform him. This is how we will keep him under control. If he runs off, his body will produce more and more ADAM until he overdoses constantly. He'll have no choice but to return to us and get some needles, otherwise deform into a Splicer. When we're done with him, we can let him overdose," Elizabeth said back then, and walked to Zachary's side. "Hear that, Comstock? One day, you will look like someone who's had his rotten face rubbed by a cheese grater. I can't wait to see the look in your eyes. You'll be viewed as a disgusting monster no one will want to be around."

Elizabeth's own wrinkling face came to mind, her own addictions...

Next scene, "...The new genetic information can be replicated and then processed with his ADAM into injectable serums. We can implement his supernatural abilities into other patients, but without adequately available EVE, their Plasmids will be of limited use. So far, only his body can regenerate EVE consistently. We will be experimenting with volunteers," a doctor spoke, and Elizabeth appeared in the Tear, smoking.

"Good; Tenenbaum would be proud. We will have to drain his ADAM and EVE to supply Plasmid use of our agents, but that's a good thing. Don't worry about lack of EVE availability, he's a good lab rat, we have nothing but time and hope. So long as his body produces blood with ADAM and EVE, he'll be sucked dry," Elizabeth mocked, giving Comstock's numb leg a little kick.

"Pinkerton's who are insubordinate or defected have also been drained of their ADAM. Some have died from blood loss, but Comstock remains alive. He's quite a hardy guy," another doctor remarked.

"Exactly! Don't worry, lab rat, we won't kill you, at least not yet. I'll just make sure you feel like you're dying all the time, without rest."

Listening to herself talking like that made Elizabeth feel like shit. She took another look, seeing how she sometimes gave Zachary needles, pushing them deeply into his veins until he groaned and grimaced. At times, she would smack him across the head, or point needles at his eyes, and talking about what he did to her.

Elizabeth could not watch any longer, and walked away. As she explored, she occasionally saw dead Pinkerton's here and there, shot, but many were beaten into a bloody pulp. Some agents had their skulls busted open, brains smeared on the floor. Soon, she saw many more dead people, mostly rugged men in worker's clothing but some wore suits. Guns, blood and bullet holes were everywhere. The use of Plasmids was also evident.

Elizabeth then heard footfall, so stopped. She listened carefully, sliding her back against a wall.

"...I t'ink dat be aw' a' dem. Dey didn't see us comin'! Heh heh!" a man said, having an Irish accent.

"It ain't a serious problem now, doh, wiht dem floi'in t'ings shootin' deh city," another said.

"Woh'ever, we'll shoot 'em good, too, just ya see."

"On de ground? Dey got frickin' artilry!"

"I ain't scared a no artilry. Just ya wait, sometihn be happenin'!"

"Like wha? A bunch o' Irish folk appear in deh sky 'n help us?"

"Yeah, sometihn like dat."

"Just make sure dese cohnts r' dead n' foind anyone dat still be aloive. Dey took Lamb like an animol, n' we showed em. Shot 'em up like a bunch a bitches."

"Ha! Not even deh government be messin' wiht us Irish!"

"Eh? Deh Pinkerton's ain't government, dey be a proivate t'hing."

"Wha'ever."

 _Hunh, I guess Sofia Lamb really did have a dangerous cult going on... Must have been part of the Irish Mob. They would have lost lots of men storming the compound against private security and Plasmids. I hope I can still find Coms-...Booker..._

The footfall headed for Elizabeth's direction. It was only a matter of seconds before the group of mobsters reached the conjunction of hallways.

"Well, here goes nothing..." Elizabeth whispered, then took a breath, holstering her revolver. "Hello? Anyone there?" Elizabeth called innocently. Since she was covered with dust, chances are the Irishmen would not take her for a Pinkerton. So long as she kept her wallet closed and in her jacket...

"Eh? What dat?" one of the mobsters called, so Elizabeth jogged to meet them down the hall. She put on her best scared face, making her eyes big and keeping her lips parted.

"I... I just got out of m-my c-cell. I kept my head low until the gunshots stopped."

The mobsters looked at her without much emotion, something between not caring and not believing her.

"Wha a lady be doin' 'ere?"

"Oh, I, uh... The Pinkerton's captured me. Wanted to interrogate me, because they already captured my father. His name's Zachary Comstock, I think he and Sofia Lamb are together. Please, you gotta take me to my father. I'm Elizabeth Comstock, he needs to know I'm alive," Elizabeth explained. The mobsters' expression changed quickly.

"Oh? Yer Sofia's man's girl? Speak o' deh devil."

"I t'hink he was sayin' sometihn 'bout a Elizabeth. He sure did good killin' dem bitches, we probably wouldn't have rescued Sofia were it not fer him. Doh, he wasn't all dat happy mentionin' dis Elizabeth."

"Yeah, we...got into a big fight. Family problems. Now there's big ships blowing the city up," Elizabeth said.

"Ye, whole world's gone mad. Good t'hing we found ya, den. We'll take ye to 'im, den get out a' dis city."

"Oh, thank God, thank you."

 _I hope Booker won't kill me... Well, time for a leap of faith..._

Elizabeth followed her guides through the Pinkerton compound, the echoes of chaos sometimes shaking the facility up a bit. The intercoms ringed awake.

"Look around, my friends. See how the gene corrupts us? See how this private organization failed in the great chain of progress? See how so easily it snapped?" Sofia Lamb's voice spoke from the intercom. "See how tyranny corrupts us? But this tyranny brews in us all. Me must reject this inner tyranny, the notion of 'I, therefore I want.' This only leads to slavery and chaos. But the Pinkerton's are just one gene part of the constant tyrant. Look up above, see how self-worship drives whatever chaos came to us. This is a syndrome of constant dissatisfaction, always part of the tyrant. Each of us has the common duty for the common good, and against the common evil... That is our cause, that is our family, that is our rejection of sin. We are simply... _The Family Reborn_."

Elizabeth followed her guides as Sofia continued her strange sermon, a poetic exploration of how the gene is the enemy as it creates the tyrant.

Elizabeth saw wounded and dying mobsters here and there, all of them drinking heavily, but every Pinkerton and their co-workers were dead. Some mobsters desecrated corpses, using them as target practise. Elizabeth could only hope that some employees did not go to work, but if so, were probably killed by Columbia.

 _Columbia is destroying their city... and they're just drinking and killing?_

Eventually, Elizabeth saw _him_. Her heart stopped and she felt cold. His face was red and swollen, clothes shot up and bloodied, forehead cut, white hair dashed with blood... But still the Booker she knew. Or, at least the Booker she hoped she knew was still there. She could only imagine how many Pinkerton's he killed when she was gone.

Zachary did not notice Elizabeth. He walked around, holding a pump-action shotgun in one hand, his Smith and Wesson Model 29-2 at his side. He was constantly scanning the area around him, some of his Irish rescuers giving him a weird look. Zachary had a mix of anger and guilt on his face, probably feeling some regret and irritation to have been rescued by the Irish. But, it was also a lesson on humility.

"Booker!" Elizabeth exclaimed lightly, running towards Zachary. At first, he did not react to his name, but once he heard footfall, he turned his head, seeing a dusty Elizabeth. He stared at her, stone-faced. She stopped before him, and suddenly became nervous. How angry would he be with her?

"It's Comstock, remember?" Zachary grumbled. "And what do you want? Did you seriously just throw yourself to the wolves? You'd have to be real foolish to just show yourself like this, especially now."

" _Booker..._ I'm so glad we met, I thought I'd never find you. Were you looking for me?" Elizabeth said, tilting her head down diagonally, eyes up, and gesticulating with her arms like she used to back in Columbia. Zachary still looked like a gargoyle. He clearly was not happy. "Booker, we need to talk."

"Look, I don't know how or why Columbia is here. I thought I left it behind."

"So, you _did_ bring back the Siphon. You _bitch..._ " Elizabeth said slowly and angrily while raising her hands, then crossing her arms, glaring at Zachary. His eyebrows furrowed.

 _Well, she went back into bitch mode pretty quick..._ Zachary thought to himself.

"Like I said, Elizabeth, I don't know how or why Columbia is here. I thought I left it behind forever. If there's any constancy is this prophecy... I sure don't know how or why. You gotta believe me."

"It's not just that, Booker, it's..."

The two noticed various mobsters listening, or perhaps listening to Sofia Lamb's speech?

"Look, Elizabeth, you better leave before Sofia realizes you're here. Go on, we're done. I never saw you, just let go, you can go to Paris now," Zachary said, walking away. Elizabeth quickly walked after Booker, stepping in front of him and leaning into him. He stopped, the two keeping eye contact.

" _Booker..._ " Elizabeth growled, eyes narrowing, and she leaned a bit more, fists clenching. But then, her arms and shoulders dropped, and she looked to the side, head low. She slowly looked back at Zachary, stroking hair above her ear. "If you really had nothing to do with this... Well... We both know I can't destroy the Siphon on my own."

The two remained silent for a few seconds.

"Let's go," Zachary said. Elizabeth's eyes widened, and she followed Zachary.

"So, I was wrong. You really don't know anything about Columbia returning," Elizabeth remarked, then sighed. "Sorry, Booker. For the needles, my words, my abuse, and for...everything. And I..." she took a breath, "I forgive you, father. I'll let go, for you. I'll always forgive you, no matter how many times you hurt me...or when I hurt myself."

Zachary wanted to say something, but could not find the words. His breathing slowed, and a great weight rolled off his shoulders. He just put a hand on her shoulder. This time, she did not resist. Elizabeth suddenly embraced Zachary, and they stopped walking. Elizabeth rested her head against his chest.

" _Uh-ihh_...Elizabeth... Please, j-just..." Zachary mumbled, but Elizabeth wept into his shirt. He gently hugged her around the shoulders, comforting the woman who was, and was not, his daughter. He rested his cheek on her head, and they stayed like that for a while, feeling their troubled past melt away.

Once Elizabeth stopped crying, they slowly let go of each other. She wiped her eyes, then looked back at a pair of blue eyes like hers.

"We've got a Siphon to destroy, a big buzzard to deal with, and a flying city to put down. I'm on your side this time, child," Zachary spoke. She believed him.

"And this time, we'll finish it, together...forever," Elizabeth said, and they continued walking towards the exit.

Two dozen mobsters followed Zachary and Elizabeth.

"Who else we gonna shoot, Zack?" one of the mobsters asked.

"For now, protect Sofia, make sure she gets out of here alive. Whatever you see in the skies shooting at the city, shoot back if you have to. The enemy will be soldiers in blue uniforms. I'm off to do what I can to bring the flotilla down," Zachary replied as they exited the building.

The parking lot was a mess, dead Pinkerton's and mobsters here and there. The chaos raining from the sky caused much mayhem, perhaps a fourth of Manhattan on fire, sirens and screaming echoing throughout the streets.

"An' how do ya plan gettin' up dere?" a mobster asked as thunder roared.

The weather was horrible. The thunder and lightning amplified, and snow flurried down as well. Thunder became so powerfully, the ground shook.

"With a song," Elizabeth answered, looking up in the sky.

"Singing? You sure it'll work with all the chaos around?" Zachary asked, but Elizabeth was confident.

"A song...with a leap of faith."

Elizabeth did not have any musical instruments, but she did have her voice. Cupping her mouth, she took a deep but gentle breath, and began singing a wordless song.

She steadily began singing the following notes: A, C, A, C, A, G, A, F, low C, F, G, A, G, F, C, A, C, A, C, A, G, A, F, low C, F, G, A, B flat, A, G, F.

Her voice echoed up the city, but how could anything hear it from all the chaos? As Elizabeth neared the end of the song, Zachary could see the silhouette of an old friend zigzagging in the sky. Just as Elizabeth reached the last four notes, powerful shrieking echoed throughout the skies, but she continued singing the last notes.

The mobsters became spooked as the otherworldly wailing intensified.

"Well, I'll be... He heard you," Zachary commented.

"Sometimes, all you need is a leap of faith," Elizabeth said. She then turned around to face the mobsters. "Don't shoot the giant bird!" she warned.

Songbird flew down powerfully, his presence causing the mobsters to back off. But, Elizabeth and Zachary stood idle, even as Songbird landed with a mighty crashed. Many mobsters got scared and ran for cover behind various cars.

Zachary almost expected Songbird to attack him. Songbird's eye beamed yellow, cocking his head side to side, as if confused. Eye turning green, Songbird gently presented his mighty paw, Elizabeth stepping forth, placing her hand on it.

"Comstock, too," she said softly to her guardian. The bird looked at Zachary, eyes turning yellow. The buzzard tilted his head acutely, as if thinking. Songbird gently tightened his grip around Elizabeth and Zachary, and flew off with them.

* * *

Meanwhile, up above, Eleanor and Booker stood their ground, taking cover here and there. Booker fired his carbine, but also swapped various weapons dropped by the many foes the two defeated. Eleanor relied on Plasmids, but like Booker, when able, she acquired firearms and used them.

Booker occasionally found Salts, and drank them. He cast Murder of Crows against multiple gunships, that would keep the soldiers distracted. Against Mosquitoes, accurate shots into their rotaries sent them plummeting to the earth. Eleanor also used her telekinesis to interrupt the rotaries of the Mosquitoes, disrupting them and sending them falling down.

Eleanor and Booker fired carbines at their foes, in gunships and on deck, but also tossed fiery Plasmids at the enemies who got too close. Booker's mix of Devil's Kiss traps and explosive masses worked very well with Eleanor's Big Sister fiery explosives. There was so much fire around them, many soldiers running onto the deck were forced to keep their distance. The flames blinded them partly as well.

The Security Zeppelins were the biggest threat, as Eleanor and Booker could only destroy their vessel's rocket launchers and propellers, but not much else. Eleanor would sometimes teleport into the zeppelins and kill their crews. Other times, she would hurl explosive fireballs at the zeppelin's propellers, destroying them, forcing the zeppelins to slowly glide only. She would then cast fiery Plasmids onto the wings, putting them on fire. Once a wing burned apart, the zeppelin gradually began crashing, sometimes smashing into other zeppelins or gunships.

"Rocket launcher!" Eleanor warned as several Beasts with explosives-launching weapons flew towards them on a gunship.

"Split up!" Booker shouted, running out of cover, his shields withstand fire as he picked off some foes with his carbine. Slipping on his Sky-Hook, he jumped onto the Sky-Line, then onto a gunship, smashing a soldier off it. As his shields began to break, he picked up a shotgun and blasted a few heads off.

Eleanor had teleported atop the gunship with the Beasts, who observed that Booker took out a gunship on his own. The Beasts did not notice Eleanor, and just as they fired rockets at Booker, Eleanor used her telekinesis to boomerang the rockets right back at the Beasts! This surprised them greatly, and they fell off their feet. Eleanor took the advantage, using her psychokinesis to pull their helmets off, then shot them all in their heads.

"For the glory of Columbia!" a Motorized Patriot shouted, running through the wall of flames and opening fire with his crank gun. Booker lept onto the Sky-Lines, firing back at the mechanical gunner, his shields being eaten away.

Casting Shock Jockey and electrocuting the Motorized Patriot, Booker then jumped off, landing atop the mechanical gunner. Ramming his shotgun into the opening containing gears, Booker fired into its interior, busting apart the machinery inside. It fell over, busted.

Booker fired his shotgun until it was out of ammo, then threw it at some soldiers, picked up the crank gun, and opened fire. He mowed down perhaps two dozen soldiers as they charged through the flames.

Once his crank gun was out of ammo, Booker heard heavy footfall, and three Motorized Patriots ran through the flames.

"Uhh...nuh-uh..." Booker mumbled, throwing down his crank gun, withdrawing a pistol and firing at them.

"Only the guilty flee before the Prophet's watchful eye!" one of the patriots shouted.

"Remember, False Shepard Booker DeWitt, your night of reckoning is nigh!" the other bellowed as Booker cast Possession on the third one, which immediately turned and opened fire at the two others.

Booker made a getaway via the Sky-Lines, two patriots shooting at him while the Possessed one fired at them. Booker's shields shattered, but bullets continued whizzing all around him. Soon, the two Motorized Patriots fired upon the Possessed one, gradually destroying it. The break in fire gave Booker some time, but carabiniers from the many gunships continued shooting at him.

Booker raised his legs as a rocket screeched towards him, passing in-between his legs.

"Oh, well that was close..." he remarked, jumping from section to section of Sky-Lines to evade more rockets of various sizes fired from Security Zeppelins, RPGs, and Volley Guns.

While Booker whizzed along the Sky-Lines, Eleanor was teleporting amongst the zeppelins, super gunships and regular gunships, unleashing her fiery Plasmids upon the crews, only to teleport elsewhere before they could react! Her constant use of sprinting, teleportation, fiery Plasmids, Electrobolt, and telekinetic bursts caused much mayhem for the crews, a portion blown off their ships and falling to their deaths into the flaming city below. Eleanor, undoubtedly, could put any Houdini Splicer to shame. Her overuse of Plasmids was quite draining, causing her to sweat profusely, head and body aching, but she pushed on.

"The demon moves quick! Keep firing!" a soldier advised, machine gun ripping as Eleanor sprinted and jumped off the super gunship. She teleported midair and reappeared on another gunship, and brought fiery death to the crew.

The PA boomed again.

"All ships, focus on the intruders! Cease bombardment of the Sodom Below, and wipe away the False Shepherd and his demonic companion!"

Eleanor took that as a compliment.

"Don't worry, I'll give you all a head start! Know that everything you did to the city, will happen to you!" Eleanor exclaimed, noticing that a flock of crows flew after her. She teleported to another gunship, one that she had already emptied, and the crows continued flying after her.

"The crows crave the flesh of the demon! Where you see crows, you will see the demon! Get spotlights onto the demon!" the PA advised.

Now, many more soldiery on deck and in gunships fired at Eleanor's general direction. Spotlights followed the crows and beamed after Eleanor. With so much attention drawn on her, Booker was given more time and safety, so he leapt onto the Hand of the Prophet, grabbed a sniper rifle, and began picking off distant foes.

The flames caused by Devil's Kiss and Eleanor's Plasmids remained, and rushing through them were several soldiers head-to-toe in mechanical armour mounted with boilers.

"Return to hell, False Shepherd!" one of them shouted, hurling Devil's Kisses at Booker. He grunted as he got burned, but continued the fight regardless.

"The world shall burn! And you shall blacken with it! Burn everything!" another screamed, throwing fiery projectiles at Booker. The other Firemen cast Devil's Kiss as well, forcing Booker to dart off. He dropped his sniper rifle and picked up a fallen machine gun, firing at the Firemen and then leaping onto the Sky-Lines again.

A Fireman leapt onto the Sky-Lines himself, the others hurling explosive fireballs at Booker but staying on deck. Booker zoomed along, casting Shock Jockey at the Fireman using the Sky-Lines, and then Booker swung his machine gun like a bat as he past him, striking the Fireman down to the earth.

"Death releases me from hell!" the Fireman screamed as he fell.

Booker wanted to cast Shock Jockey at the other Firemen, but he was out of Salts. For now, he could only fire back at other attackers and hope his limited shields stood strong.

Eleanor had noticed Booker's fiery predicament. She teleported behind the group of Firemen, and unleashed a furious electrobolt at them. The group of Firemen got electrified, screaming throughout their metal suits. She then targeted one FIreman, lifted him up with psykokinesis, and simply hurled him off the flagship. Down he fell.

A Fireman's suit made a high-pitched whirring sound, and he charged Eleanor.

"You will suffer, you bitch! Know how this suit feels!" the Fireman screamed, his suit gradually breaking apart and flames spewing out. Eleanor raised her carbine and opened fire, and he exploded, hurling Eleanor off her feet.

Immediately, crows swarmed Eleanor, but the Firemen's Devil's Kisses engulfed the feathery critters and they flicked about on fire. Eleanor got up and darted away, outrunning projectiles thrown at her. Booker landed next to her, reloading his machine gun and opening fire. Eleanor stood by him, reloading her carbine and firing at the charging Firemen.

Eleanor and Booker received some explosive damage, their clothes and skin darkening from soot, but they continued firing. Eleanor threw fiery projectiles back at the Firemen and electrobolts, while Booker found a small bottle of Salts and gulped it down.

"Don't just stand there! Get after them!" a soldier barked, and then dozens forced themselves through the flames and fired at the False Shepherd and his companion, a portion resulting in friendly fire on the Firemen. Their suits cracked open, spewing flames.

The charging Firemen's suits whirred and they ran with greater vigour.

"Last words: burn, broil and fry!"

"We all suffer! All punishments must be extreme!"

"No escape from hellfire!"

"Ashes to ashes, come back for me!"

"Teach them about fire, right Father?" Eleanor remarked as the suicidal Firemen approached their impending doom.

Booker, knowing her could not kill several Firemen quickly, cast Bucking Bronco, lifting the charging Firemen up. Eleanor then unleashed a powerful psychokinetic blast, hurling the levitated Firemen back into the soldiers! The ensuing fiery explosions ignited dozens of soldiers. Arms flailing and heads thrashing, the soldiers screamed their last breaths before inhaling smoke and fire, suffocating and burning.

Booker quickly reloaded his machine gun and sprayed bullets into the flaming soldiers, euthanizing them.

"Hey! I wanted to watch them die!" Eleanor somewhat protested, then she and Booker heard strange ripping echoing throughout the night sky.

They spun around, seeing what appeared to be a Tear taking up half the sky. Massive lightning bolts struck the edge of the Tear, and thunder reverberated wildly. The electrical chaos continued, and then more airships flew out the gigantic Tear, these donned in red drapes.

"The airships from the previous world? What are they doing here?" Eleanor asked.

"They're the same ships from the other world!" Booker warned as the Vox flotilla opened fire at the other flotilla. The Prophet's flotilla reacted violently, the flagship making a sudden turn, causing everyone aboard to stagger, and its massive guns opened fire.

Vox gunships joined the fray, sometimes ramming into Founder gunships, crews of both sides shooting like crazy. Vox Firemen and Zealots used their Vigors against their enemies, and the clash in the clouds intensified. Vox ships broke apart by the Hand of the Prophet's guns fell into the burning city.

"Eleanor! We gotta break into this ship and commandeer it! We need to destroy the Siphon!" Booker instructed, emptying his machine. He picked up two hand cannons and fired at Vox forces shooting at him.

"The Siphon? What's that?" Eleanor called, hurling fiery Plasmids at many gunships while gripping a machine gun in her other hand, shooting several Zealots dead as they charged her. The last Zealot of the group managed to reach her. Swung his sword at her, Eleanor knocked the blade aside with her machine gun, then kicked him across the jaw and knocked him out.

"It's a giant statue! Called Monument Island! We destroy it, and Elizabeth's Tears won't be contained!" Booker answered, a Vox Beast and several rebels leaping off a gunship and landing on the flagship. The Beast fired a Volley Gun whilst the rebels fired their guns. Booker fired both hand cannons into the Beast's helm multiple times, then Eleanor electrocuted the rebels and inflamed them with her Plasmids.

"How do you know that?" Eleanor asked, turning around and hurling explosive fireballs at a Vox gunship's crew shooting at her.

"I don't know! I just do!"

"Alright! Let's steal this flying boat! How do we destroy this Siphon?"

"I don't know! I'll think of something!"

Eleanor and Booker fought their way through the horde of Founder forces, entering the interior of the flagship. Working together, Eleanor and Booker destroyed a number of Motorized Patriots and Gun Automatons, and killed perhaps several dozen soldiers.

By the end of all that, Booker and Eleanor each had two hand cannons holstered at their sides, a carbine slung over the shoulders, and carrying shotguns.

"I'll explore the ship, and either lock or sabotage doors to cut-off access to the deck. We'll have less problems from hostile reinforcements," Eleanor said.

"Okay, and I'll head to the bridge! See you there!" Booker said, and Eleanor teleported away.

Eleanor teleported to various doors, locking them by manipulating the mechanics with her psykokinesis. She then sabotaged the locked doors, causing springs to deform and other smaller parts to slip out of place. This would prevent more soldiers from coming from the lower decks, making slightly less problems. Once that was done, she teleported up to the bridge.

Looking through the windows, Eleanor could see the aerial battle raging outside. At first, she could not see Booker, but found him in a room at the back of the bridge. He was looking at various engravings on the walls, something about a prophet's visions?

Near the engravings, was some sort of statue of an angel, the lower front a cut-out revealing a glowing device that zapped and hummed. The statue was part of a miniature crypt, implemented with a large stone coffin. The sarcophagus had a glass lid.

Rays of bright white light illuminated the interior of the stone coffin, and purple light swirled out as well. The brightness inside the coffin was so severe, staring into it hurt the eyes.

Eleanor had no way to understand the imagery, but Booker seemed focused. Suddenly, they heard a high-pitched scream, coming from...the coffin? The bright lights intensified, rays beaming out the coffin. Something was thudding inside the coffin, groaning and crying out.

"Wait, that sounds like... Elizabeth!" Booker yelled, trying to open the coffin, but he could not find a way. He began pounding the butt of his shotgun against the glass, but it remained affixed.

Eleanor used her psychokinesis to break the lid open. Dropping his shotgun, Booker threw his arms into the light, dragging out Elizabeth from the coffin. White light was beaming out the young woman's eyes and body, purple lights also swirling out her body. She was violently writhing forwards and backwards, clawing at her head and crying out from pain.

"Ahh, dammit! No, no, no, no, no, no! Elizabeth, I-I don't know what to do!" Booker was trying to do something, gently lying her down, but then she simply began thrashing her head up and down, smashing it against the floor like a possessed toy. Booker grabbed her head, trying to stabilize it, but Elizabeth continued her violent spasms.

Elizabeth inhaled deeply, then let out a strange, distorted, scream. After that, she went limp, but continued thrashing about, smacking her arms and head against the floor. Booker's grip could not keep her in place, and he in fact was nearly thrown off.

Then, strange, distorted music began playing. It sounded like Mozart's _Lacrimosa_ from his _Requiem_ in D minor, sung by a soprano with a wobbly voice. The music emanated from inside Elizabeth's head.

"Goddammit! What the hell's going on?" Booker yelled, unable to restrain Elizabeth's violent spasms.

Eleanor used her telekinesis to levitated Elizabeth, holding her midair.

"There! She won't hurt herself anymore!" Eleanor stated, though Elizabeth began flailing her head and limbs acutely, bones and joints popping. "Uh..."

The two heard powerful, vibrating wailing echoing throughout the skies. They looked out the window, seeing both Vox and Founder ships shooting each other down, as well as something else flying through the chaos. It screamed again.

"Aww, shit! It's the buzzard!" Booker warned, now desperately looking around and trying to figure out how to help Elizabeth.

"I'll try to restrain her!" Eleanor said, partly stabilizing Elizabeth's flailing body. Elizabeth screamed with a distorted, echoing voice, foggy white light now emanating from her body.

Booker looked at the miniature Siphon replica, and got an idea. He picked up his shotgun and fired once at the glowing blue device, destroying it. An electrostatic discharge blasted out the device, and with such force, it threw he, Eleanor and Elizabeth across the bridge with great force.

At the same time, Songbird landed hard on the flagship, slamming upon a group of Vox insurgents. Songbird knelt, then looked up, seeing Eleanor, Elizabeth and Booker fly through the windows of the bridge, two shotguns also flying out.

Eleanor used her psychokinesis to slow down their falling, and they landed on the deck as Vox and Founder soldiery fired at each other from everywhere. Booker sat up, coughing, then rolled over to check on Elizabeth. She was back to normal, clutching her head and sitting up.

"Elizabeth..." Booker softly said, and she looked at him.

"Booker?" she whispered, then the two turned their heads and looked at Songbird, who was staring upon them with yellow eyes.

The Bird lowered his arms over everyone, shielding them from rockets and bullets. Soon, the Founder and Vox forces mostly targeted one another.

"Hunh, and here I thought he'd be ripping me apart..." Booker remarked as Songbird slowly picked himself.

"Why would he? He already carried you up down below. I sang him his whole song, now he will wholly obey me," Elizabeth explained, Booker looking at her as she picked himself up, yet her voice...came from behind him?

As Songbird's arms lifted off the deck, Booker turned around, seeing Elizabeth, who now wore a grey uniform and was rather dusty. She looked at him, so Booker turned his head and stared at Elizabeth, the one in blue.

The Elizabeths then looked at each other, the one in blue widening her eyes, the one in grey just lifting an eyebrow. The Elizabeth in blue raised her forearms up a bit, wondering what to say, but was dumbstruck. Eleanor looked at person to person, quite surprised herself.

"Believe it, kiddo," Pinkerton Elizabeth remarked, crossing her arms.

"Alright, which is which?" Eleanor asked, the Elizabeths looking at her.

The Elizabeth in grey looked at Booker, and the Elizabeth in blue looked at Zachary. Booker and Zachary were staring at each other like gargoyles. The only differences between the two men were hair colour, eye colour, and clothes. Ghostly static and tuning sounded.

"Booker, you're bleeding..." both Elizabeths said at the same time, Zachary and Booker touching their own noses, and seeing blood on their fingers. They looked back at each other, resuming their standoff.

"Are you kidding me..." Zachary almost complained, keeping his hand above his holstered revolver.

"Who are you?" Booker asked, certainly confused, fingers slowly curling in and out above his holstered revolvers.

"I'm you, idiot," Zachary replied, pulling out his Smith & Wesson Model 29-2 and spinning its cylinder.

"No, you ain't me, pal," Booker assured, unholstering a hand cannon and giving the cylinder a spin.

"Then one of us isn't real," Zachary said, pulling his revolver's hammer back.

"Then one of us is gonna _die_ ," Booker spat, also pulling his revolver's hammer back.

"Agreed. There's only gonna be one in a moment."

"Just shut up and let's do this."

"No!" the Elizabeths said, stepping between the doppelgangers just as they raised their revolvers. Blue Elizabeth just gave Zachary a pair of puppy dog eyes, and he hesitated.

"No-no-no-no-no, no, no. No. No," Pinkerton Elizabeth spoke to Booker, then her eyes narrowed and she slightly tilted her head. " _No..._ " she whispered.

Each Elizabeth approaching their contrasting Booker made the men pause, Songbird casually looking down on them. Eleanor looked back at him, then sensed something odd.

"Does anyone else hear that?" Eleanor asked, and then everyone heard a ghostly, wobbly version of Mozart's _Lacrimosa_ , the soprano's voice also wobbly, causing everyone to look back up to the bridge.

Some sort of ghostly thing quickly floated down from the bridge. Then, the Siren floated upwards while raising her arms, releasing an inhaling-like, ghostly cry, a mass of bright light and white electricity emanating from her.

All around the Bookers, Elizabeths, Eleanor and Songbird, corpses picked themselves up, eyes strongly glowing brightly. The reanimated bodies, all at the same time, looked at them.


	28. Chapter 28 - The Siphon

The Siren sharply and loudly inhaled, probably angry that her husband had abandoned Columbia all those years ago. The wobbly-effected soprano's voice in the _Lacrimosa_ amplified, almost sounding like it echoed amongst the skulls of the resurrected Founder and Vox soldiery, more and more summoning into the world, numbering several dozen at least. The glow in their eyes intensified, and the undead shuffled amongst themselves, breathing heavily. Songbird's eyes glowed yellow.

 _I smell roses again,_ Eleanor thought to herself.

"The bitch, is back," someone remarked, causing everyone to look to the right. Back leaning against the supports of the mezzanine, was none other than Michael, arms crossed, long hair and ferraiolo rapidly flicking in the wind.

Snowfall increased, now dotting everyone's hair and clothes with white. Thunder and lightning punished the skies, and the entirety of the smouldering blackness rippled with a Tear-like effect.

"Who the hell is that?" Booker asked, noticing Elizabeth lean to him, as if afraid.

"Michael Vay Atar..." Pinkerton Elizabeth answered under her breath, giving Michael an angry look while withdrawing her revolver.

"Seems it will take more than fire to kill him," Eleanor remarked, rather surprised to see him again. Eleanor saw blue Elizabeth cowering next to Booker.

"He's the one who put me in that coffin!" Elizabeth accused.

"That son of a bitch..." Booker muttered quickly, wanting to shoot the freak, but being surrounded by so many undead made him hesitate.

"The slightest move...and the Siren's minions will open fire and kill us all," Michael warned, then coughed out some blood. Booker hesitated. There sure were quite a lot of undead.

Michael then looked at the Siren, as did everyone else. She was glaring at Zachary, who could not look back.

"Lady Comstock...what is she doing here? But, we...I thought..." Pinkerton Elizabeth whispered to herself, her stomach churning. Even after all this time, she still felt a little uneasiness of _that_ woman. They had forgiven each other, that was the past, why was the Siren here?

"The Prophet...returns," the Siren remarked with a ghostly voice. "You left me, and _Columbia!_ Left _me_ for another _woman!_ You abandoned _everything!_ Liar! Adulterer! Murderer!Little creatures digging and biting in me!" she screeched, translucent blood trickling out her eyes and mouth.

Blue Elizabeth and Booker looked at Zachary suspiciously.

Zachary's gaze and eyes lowered. He really did not want this part of his past to catch up to him. Flashbacks of what had happened ten years ago returned, watching _her_ tiny head thud against the pavement...

"I..." Zachary hesitated. When he left for Rapture, he also left a woman who truly loved him, a woman he had forgiven. She must have spent the rest of her life in total loneliness and hopelessness.

"Well, at least he didn't have you killed this time," Michael quietly remarked, taking a look around as the undead gazed at him and his friends. " _Cum bona venia_ , probably wasn't a good idea, tho..."

" _You..._ " Zachary quivered angrily and quietly, glowering at Michael. Michael looked back blankly, eyeless sockets dripping blood. "You had something to do with this!" Zachary accused.

"She seems to have...reverted to her angry state, as if someone activated a special Siphon," Michael said apathetically, then looked back at the Siren. "Ahh, yes... After you left for Rapture, you eventually died of heartache. A shame, really. So much sorrow and loneliness, waiting for the man who never came back for her, even after he forgave her of everything, always. She drowned in hopelessness," Michael then turned his eyeless face at blue Elizabeth's direction, "perhaps a foreshadowing of what is to become of you."

"All your fault, filthy bastard child! He loved you more than _me_ , wanted you more than _me_ , you ruined _me!_ " the Siren wailed at Elizabeth, ethereal blood spurting out her ghostly mouth.

Elizabeth slightly raised her hands, like a child caught in trouble, afraid of the ghostly thing that was spawned from her own fears and anxieties. She did not know why, but her skin shivered painfully, as if little things were crawling under her skin. Pinkerton Elizabeth gasped, raising her shoulders, also feeling the strange sensation.

"I think we should focus on those conjured entities..." Eleanor suggested, examining the undead, but no one seemed to care about her.

"No, Eleanor, leave them be," Michael warned, Eleanor looking at him, then calming down a bit.

"A rocket better not hit us," Eleanor remarked, then looked back at the Siren, who glared at Zachary, the glow in her eyes and her aura intensifying, and blood trickled out her frame where her nervous system would be.

Songbird made a wheezing mechanical noise, unsure if the ghost of Lady Comstock was a threat or not. Eleanor didn't really know what to do, either.

"Shame, False Prophet! Shame! You sinner! Murderer! Everything of you was a lie! A lie! You ruined _me!_ Abandoned _me!_ Betrayed _me!_ "

"Is she talkin' about...Comstock?" Booker asked, he and blue Elizabeth looking at each other, then at Zachary. Elizabeth looked back at the Siren.

"If she's Lady Comstock, then..." blue Elizabeth whispered, befuddled.

"Is she a Rapture ghost?" Eleanor asked, keeping an eye out on the undead. They, like the Siren, remained non-hostile, as if they did not want to fight. Eleanor noticed some of the undead jerking their weapons downwards, as if struggling against themselves.

"No. She is neither dead nor alive, multiple realities of hers merged, I guess," Zachary replied. He then looked at the Elizabeth in blue, "Elizabeth, I am not your father. I hope you can figure everything on out from here."

"Comstock..." Elizabeth remarked quietly, "But, how..." She did not know what to say.

" _Comstock?_ _You're_ Comstock?" Booker nearly shouted.

Zachary looked back at him.

"Yes, but not the Comstock you are thinking of," Zachary answered.

"Wait, wait, wait! _What!_ What does that mean? You can't be Comstock! What does this... What the _hell_ is going on!?" Booker demanded, putting an arm over Elizabeth, as if expecting Comstock to lash out at her, but he didn't.

The undead groaned, some raising their guns, but did not fire.

"Many worlds exist beyond the Tears. It looks like a few got together," Pinkerton Elizabeth remarked, the other Elizabeth thinking to herself. Then, the two felt tuning and static in their heads, causing blood to drip out their noses, and their veins and eyes to glow yellow for a few seconds.

"But...but how? None of this makes any sense, this isn't how it should be..." blue Elizabeth said, returning to normal. "What's happening to me?"

"Elizabeth? You alright?" Booker asked, quite concerned of Elizabeth, then frowned at Zachary. "Just...what the hell is going on?" Booker spat, still confused and upset about everything. He looked at Zachary as if everything was his fault.

"Do we really have the time discussing this?" Zachary asked, "I really don't know what's going on! I didn't expect Columbia to return."

"Bullshit! Whoever the hell you are, answer me! And answer me now!" Booker yelled angrily, then many undead groaned, some raising their guns, but still did not fire.

"Careful, Mr. DeWitt. Any more sudden movements, or anger, and the minions will open fire," Michael cautioned, Booker grunting but forcing himself to calm down a bit.

"There's lots of us, Booker, through many worlds, through the Tears. End of story," Zachary said to Booker. He noticed the Siren shaking from anger, clutching her head at times.

"Look, Annabelle, I'm sorry I left you! I really am! But I couldn't live with myself after what I've done!" Zachary said, but the Siren just flailed her head back and screamed, blood flowing out her mouth. Blood also leaked out Michael's mouth, but he did not appear troubled.

"He's telling the truth!" Pinkerton Elizabeth exclaimed, "Listen to him, and to me! We don't want you to suffer! He understands you are a victim of his wrongdoing! He's sorry! He forgave me, I forgave him, we let go, so can you," she continued while gesticulating with her arms, but the Siren growled.

"Please, Annabelle, please..." Zachary pleaded.

" _Ahh!_ " Pinkerton Elizabeth cried. Her eyes began glowing yellow, the painful static and tuning noises returning, her nose and mouth leaking blood, reddening her already bloodstained shirt even more. She then felt electricity rub her skin. The other Elizabeth, and the Siren, undergone the same stress, Booker putting a hand on blue Elizabeth's shoulder. Many undead groaned again.

"Careful, everyone..." Michael advised, then looked up, seeing Songbird slowly cocking his head to and fro, investigating the undead, which surely were on Columbia's side?

Songbird groaned, looking down at the Elizabeths in their pain, unsure of how to help them.

"I think we should just attack them, now," Eleanor suggested, hearing the Siren's minions breathing and some moaning.

"Just, wait... There's no way we can take them on all at the same time and expect to win," Zachary warned.

"Insects under my skin...whispering to me... Get out of me...get out...Get out of me!" the Siren exclaimed. Her undead behaved oddly, swaying their shoulders and grumbling or moaning, the glow in their eyes and nervous systems flashing yellow.

Pinkerton Elizabeth returned to normal from the strange distortion, wiping her nose of blood, hearing the battle in the night sky raging on. It seemed that the Vox and Founders in the skies hesitated to shoot upon the strange, glowing figures on the flagship, for now.

"Disgusting insects in me! Disgusting bastard child before me! No child of mine from of my womb! No child of mine! Just insects in me! Not of my womb! _NOT OF MY WOMB!_ " the Siren screamed, a shockwave erupting from her and staggering the living, including Michael.

The Siren stared at Michael, then pointed at him.

"And you...you brought me back for this suffering! All _your_ fault! You made _me_ suffer! Made _me_ suffer!"

"Sounds like you are struggling on whose fault it is, Misses Watson. Well then, let me help you decide on who to blame..." Michael said upon regaining himself. He then swung his arm with a shout, unleashing a large green aura upon the Siren. The aura surrounded and sunk into her, the Siren wailing aloud and unleashing another shockwave, staggering the living again.

The Siren's eyes and outline of her nervous system beamed yellow speckled with green. She clawed at her head, screaming. The aura flowed upon her undead, their glowing lights mixed with yellow and green as well.

Michael then conjured a mass of glowing green in his arms, turning to everyone else...

"He wants to case Possession on us!" Eleanor exclaimed, throwing an armful of explosive fireballs upon Michael, stifling his cast of Possession. Everyone else ran off to the side and ducked, narrowly avoiding the Possession aura.

A dozen undead grunted and fired at Eleanor, but she teleported about wildly. She charged Michael, but to her surprise, he stepped forth and punched her in the forehead, causing her to twirl midair and hit the floor.

"Ow..." Eleanor mumbled as more and more undead groaned.

Pinkerton Elizabeth put one foot forward, pointing at Michael with her free hand and scowling.

"Kill him!" Pinkerton Elizabeth commanded loudly.

Songbird's eyes turned red, but he gave Pinkerton Elizabeth a quick but gentle nuzzle. He then leapt at Michael, who suddenly ran into a shadowy Tear, escaping Songbird.

The Siren screeched, blood spewing out her mouth, eyes and body as the Possession sunk into her, all her lighting now green. She screamed again, and then the undead began firing at Songbird.

Instinctively, Songbird swiped his mighty paws to and fro. He cleaved apart a score of resurrected foes while undead Zealots even using Murder of Crows against the mighty mechanical beast. But all attacks were futile. Songbird devastated many, clawing limbs off, sometimes grasping a handful of bodies, then crushing them, or smashing them against the deck.

The Siren unleashed a shockwave upon Songbird, but it did little. Songbird turned, clawing at the Siren and more undead. He seemed to have destroyed the Siren, for now.

The undead raised their arms and opened fired. Booker shielded blue Elizabeth, raising both hand cannons and firing at the ghostly foes. Zachary and Pinkerton Elizabeth fired their revolvers, Eleanor threw explosive fireballs, and Zachary hurled Devil's Kiss. Once one of Booker's hand cannons fired all its chambers, he threw it at an undead's head, then cast Murder of Crows to harass several of the undead.

Songbird spun around screaming, dragging his paws across two dozen undead and ploughing through them.

The Elizabeths conjured some cover for the Bookers, but Eleanor teleported off to the side to attack the flank of undead from behind. She cast a telekinetic pull, thrashing a score of undead backwards. A second telekinetic blast hurled them off the zeppelin.

"Where the hell's the ghost?" Booker yelled, he and Pinkerton Elizabeth firing from behind the same cover while Blue Elizabeth kept her head low, Zachary's big revolver taking out undead with a single each.

"Don't know! But I can see her footprints! She went to the bow!" blue Elizabeth yelled, covering her head as bullets flew overhead. "Booker, catch!" He caught a bottle of Salts and chugged it down. He cast Bucking Bronco, levitating a score of undead, so Eleanor sent a telekinetic blast upon them, hurling them off the zeppelin.

The Siren reappeared at the end of the bow.

"Come back to me! COME BACK! Punish them, now! No rest until they are dead!" the Siren screamed, huge electrical zaps appearing around her, then six undead soldiers appeared from nowhere, picking themselves up.

"You're all mine," Eleanor remarked, then sprinted forth, passing underneath Songbird's huge arms as he pawed the undead, and she darted towards the Siren.

Bullets fired at her direction, Eleanor did not stop charging, and drop-kicked one of the undead, knocking him overboard. She then caused a psychokinetic eruption all around her, hurling the other undead off the zeppelin.

The Siren screamed with great force, staggering Eleanor, but the teenager quickly recovered. Eleanor put her hands together and threw a gigantic fireball at the Siren. Smoke appeared, and the Siren vanished, floating away.

"Where are you going? We both know I could outrun you even underwater," Eleanor commented, chasing after the Siren while hurling Plasmids at the remaining undead.

The last of the undead did not last long, Songbird ripping them apart. Further gunfire came from the Vox ships as they shot down a few Founder airships, but the battle in the skies raged on. Since Eleanor and Booker had already dealt quite a lot of casualties already, the Founder flotilla was undermanned.

"All airships, rally above the _Hand of the Prophet_! Its generator sustained heavy damage, it must be protected at all costs!" the flagship PA boomed. Eleanor sighed at that.

"Whoever thought it was a good idea...to put an exposed generator atop the deck?" Eleanor mumbled to herself as she took cover behind a Sky-Line support. She picked up a Volley Gun and unleashed everything at the undead, and once empty, threw it at them and continued tossing fiery Plasmids.

The Vox realized their advantage and performed an all-out assault towards the _Hand of the Prophet_. They bombarded the flagship and its deck, forcing everyone to take cover under the roofing. The Sky-Lines were destroyed, and the generator heavily damaged, now spewing out smoke and sparks constantly.

Unsurprisingly, the undead fired upon the Vox, but some of the insurgents jumped down upon the flagship anyways. Many were spooked at the sight of the undead and the Siren, but they joined the fight anyways, shooting rockets and bullets like crazy.

"Ah-hah-hah-hah-hah! And look what's upon ya, now?" a black man spoke over a PA amongst the Vox airships. He routinely mocked and taunted the Founders. "Down with the False Prophet! Down with the Founders!"

"Songbird! Go get them!" Pinkerton Elizabeth shouted while reloading her revolver, and Songbird flew off, screaming, attacking enemy airships. Soon, Songbird began diving into the zeppelins, shattering the envelope and then gondola. Down the zeppelins fell into the flaming city.

Meanwhile, down below in the lower levels of the _Hand of the Prophet_ , Founder soldiery attempted to enter the deck, but the doors were always locked and broken! Dozens of Motorized Patriots made their way up the zeppelin, but had no choice but to wait for engineers to repair or deconstruct the doors in their way. Eleanor's sabotage would keep many foes locked below, for now.

Back on the deck, the fighting against the Siren and her summoned undead, and the Vox, continued. Eleanor constantly ran after the Siren, casting fire and electrobolts at her, while the Bookers and Pinkerton Elizabeth shot at the ghost and her undead and the Vox. However, no matter what they did, the Siren kept disappearing and reappearing, just like her minions, and soon, the Vox soldiery and their Motorized Patriots were gunned down by the undead.

"He ruined me, now ruin him! Punish them all! Kill the insects, please!" the Siren screamed, summoning more undead.

"Elizabeth!" Pinkerton Elizabeth shouted, getting Blue's attention, "Tell her you're sorry! That's what worked for me!" she continued, then stood up and fired at the undead.

"What?" blue Elizabeth yelled, covering her ears from so much gunfire, the Siren's wails, thunder, and Songbird's cries as he destroyed airships.

"Dammit! Those things just keep coming back!" Booker spat, shooting down a few minions, then casting Shock Jockey at them.

The cover the Elizabeths' conjured phased away, but the Bookers' shields withstood the imminent gunfire as they ran for cover behind the various protrusive sections of machinery. Booker shielded blue Elizabeth, while Zachary shielded Pinkerton Elizabeth, and Eleanor cast electrifying, fiery and anti-gravitational Plasmids at the undead to divert their attention. Whenever too much gunfire went her way, Eleanor would teleport somewhere, and gradually spread the fighting.

"I'll try this!" blue Elizabeth exclaimed, conjuring a Motorized Patriot.

"You all shall taste the justice of Elizabeth Comstock!" the Patriot warned, unloading his crank gun and gunning down a dozen undead. He then ran after while shooting at the Siren as she floated around, Eleanor also hot on her heels and attacking with fiery Plasmids, while the Bookers fired at the Siren and her minions.

"Why did you come!? _Why did you come!?_ " the Siren wailed, summoning yet another batch of undead, some of which were trampled by the Motorized Patriot. He continued firing at them and the Siren, smashing his gun at the enemy as well, but was soon shot apart.

The Siren suddenly whizzed forth, going face-to-face with blue Elizabeth and screeching powerfully. Blue Elizabeth fell onto her butt from the shockwave, then noticed undead rising all around her.

"Kill her! Kill the bastard child! Kill the insects! _PLEASE!_ "

" _Elizabeth!_ " Booker and Zachary shouted at the same time, charging, gunning down the rising undead.

The Siren withstood the bullets hitting her, then she grabbed Elizabeth by the throat and lifted her up.

" _Elizabeth!_ " Zachary and Booker screamed, but then the Siren wailed aloud, the shockwave knocking the charging men, as well as the charging Eleanor, down.

Summoning three dozen more undead, the Siren then floated upwards, Elizabeth firmly in her grasp. Elizabeth gripped the Siren's forearm, trying to wriggle herself free, but was quite stuck. Face reddening from lack of breathing, the choking petite lady looked into the eyes of the Siren, a ghostly glare piercing her soul. The Siren pulled Elizabeth to her, and screamed at her face, the noise deafening and causing Elizabeth's hair to blow back.

" _You_ thorn in my heart! _You_ cancer! _You_ disgusting little monster! You and the insects! Ruined everything!" the Siren screeched, floating off to the side of the zeppelin.

Elizabeth felt rising smoke flow through her, snowflakes pummeling her face, and her feet dangling in the air. Her heart felt like it jumped up to her throat, her guts following up as well.

"Bastard bitch of unholy science!" the Siren screamed, pulling Elizabeth to her face.

Elizabeth's lungs ached with the demand for air, something they did not receive.

" _Everything_ ruined! Ruined because of _you!_ " the Siren wailed, then extended her arm.

"I-I...I'm s-s-sorry..." Elizabeth croaked, trying to breathe. Her feet began twitching, knees jerking upward, and felt her eyes about to roll backwards.

"Elizabeth!" Booker yelled, charging through the undead and knocking over a few, then sprinting after his daughter. Zachary, Eleanor and the other Elizabeth continued the fight, but were overwhelmed by sheer numbers.

Zachary's shields shattered, and he was shot multiple times in the chest and fell over.

" _Stay with me, Booker!_ " Pinkerton Elizabeth immediately went to work, getting a needle and medical supplies ready to keep Zachary on this side of the abyss.

"Hmm... Even after everything he had done to you, forgiveness prevailed?" a man asked, Elizabeth looking up. She saw a pair of empty eye sockets, _that man_ standing nearby, arms spread apart but bent at the elbow, cape and long hair fluttering in the wind. "I respect you. I did not expect that."

Elizabeth grunted, ignoring _him_ , continuing her medical treatment of the injured Zachary as rockets exploded in the skies. A few bullets fired from somewhere hit Michael's chest, but he remained standing as if nothing happened, blood leaking down.

"You will not make it in time to destroy the Siphon, Ms. Comstock," Michael said, Elizabeth pausing and thinking heavily. She slowly looked back up at him, eyes fierce.

In a fit of anger, Elizabeth raised her revolver and fired once, shooting Michael in the head. His head reared, but he realigned it, the bullet hole in-between his eyes and gushing blood. He remained standing, and remained grinning.

"What...are you?" Elizabeth asked.

"Not even a headshot of your revolver, _The Ambassador_ , can kill me. Very few things can truly kill me," Michael replied.

"Whah...how? Wait... Ever since you started working for the Pinkerton's... With me... That's when so many doors started closing, disappearing... Now that you're here, I can't feel or see any Tears..." Elizabeth said as if talking to herself. Michael slowly tilted his head, and grinned again, blood leaking out his mouth and eye sockets.

"A peculiar Tonic indeed. The effects of the Siphon implemented in my genes."

"I... I can't believe I didn't notice this sooner..." Elizabeth said, head dropping. "You only worked with us to, to, to..."

"To learn from you. Long ago, I was a Boy of Silence, who broke free of his conditioning. I could only form basic Tears, so I went out to find you, and others like you. Only then, could I connect my consciousness with yours, and gradually acquire your connection with Tears. Along the way, I met...others... Ellie, Atlas, Anna, Eleanor...and learned from them."

"But...how?"

"When Ellie brought you back with her Tear-infused Plasmid, and brought back the other Elizabeth, and brought back Zachary, this allowed me to bond with all of you. And so, I learned, over the course of many years."

"And now you want to stop us from destroying the Siphon. You don't want me to regain total control of my Tears," Elizabeth said, then heard Zachary groan. "Oh, shit, I forgot to save you!" Elizabeth cursed, and she continued working.

"The ocean of time is against you, Elizabeth. It always was," Michael said, slowly clasping his hands behind his back and walking forwards. When Elizabeth looked up, Michael suddenly extended an arm, grasping her around the neck. He lifted her up and slammed her into the deck, impact causing her to drop her gun.

Elizabeth groaned, crawling backwards and looking for her gun, but then Michael grasped her again, this time with telekinetic power. He made her levitate, and stood before her. His eyeless face had no emotion whatsoever, just blank. Elizabeth wanted to cry out for help, but Michael's power gripped her tongue as well.

It seemed that Eleanor was busy trying to stay alive, Booker was shooting everything he could find at the undead and the Siren to free Elizabeth, and no one noticed what Michael was doing amidst the chaos.

"You would ruin all my work, Ms. Comstock," Michael spoke in a deeper voice, his speech causing blood to bubble out his mouth and eye sockets.

Michael's psychokinetic power grasped Elizabeth's bones, tendons and muscles, and she moaned through clenched teeth, feeling like her skeleton wanted to squeeze out her body. Her arms and legs extended, joints popping. She shut her eyes tightly from the pain, unable to scream for help.

"And for that, I have no choice but to rip you apart, inside out."

Elizabeth gradually made a cute little grin, blood trickling out her mouth, and she slowly opened her eyes. Michael furrowed his eyebrows and cocked his head. When he looked up, a huge beast slammed into him, smashing him a few feet into the deck. Elizabeth fell, freed from Michael's power, watching as Songbird flew off with Michael's broken body gushing blood. Songbird grasped Michael with both hands, ripped him apart, and threw the halves away. Songbird then flew off to destroy more airships attacking the _Hand of the Prophet_.

Regaining herself, Elizabeth grabbed her revolver and shot a few undead and Vox down. She then summoned a Motorized Patriot to defend her while she continued her medical work of Zachary, holstering her revolver.

"Ha! Look what they got? Nuthin'! Jus' old tales n' old lies, 'bout damn time we be treatin' ya'll like this!" the Vox announcer spoke in his PA, and dozens of Vox soldiery in several gunships flew by, firing upon the flagship. "Just as Daisy said, we be comin' back ta Columbia for vengeance! And here's what the _real_ future is: all o' the Lady's city goin' crashin' down to the ground! We fire the last shots!"

Eleanor did what she could to keep the attention of her undead and Vox forces, but she was strained and tired. Bullets bounced off her and hurt, blood leaked out her mouth, but she kept teleporting and utilizing Plasmids. She picked up a fallen sniper rifle, just in time to see the flashing scopes of other snipers in their gunships. She picked them off until the bullets ran out, then used a rocket launcher against a Vox gunship, then a Burstgun to take out a number of undead shooting at her.

Amidst the gunfight, the Siren kept blue Elizabeth in her grip, watching the little lady writhing, dying for breath. Elizabeth began kicking violently in an attempt to breathe.

"Go to _hell!_ " the Siren hissed, then threw Elizabeth overboard.

" _ELLIZAABEHHTH!_ " Booker screamed, sprinting past the Siren and literally jumping off the zeppelin.

Daughter and father reached out to each other as they fell down the darkness, plummeting toward smoke and fire. Their hands were just inches away, desperately wanting to touch each other before death.

Eleanor teleported to the side of the zeppelin, and peered down. Elizabeth and Booker disappeared into the smoke below. Eleanor's heart skipped a beat, eyebrows raised.

"They're gone..." Eleanor's shoulders drop. After a second, Eleanor saw a great volume of smoke spread apart, accompanied by a powerful, metallic cry. _He_ arose from the flames and smoke, like a metal saviour, hands gently together as if praying.

Eleanor heard the Siren scream with unkindled rage, and then two dozen Vox soldiers who appeared gunned down the undead in their way, and opened fire at the Siren while swearing. The ghost spun around with another angry howl, unleashing such a powerful shockwave, it threw Eleanor overboard, and knocked down the two dozen Vox soldiers.

Eleanor fell for a second, and then teleported back on the flagship, just in time to see the Siren dissipate into smoke and float away invisibly. Teleporting again just as Songbird swooped down, Eleanor reappeared behind the generator, seeing Songbird slam down upon the group of Vox. His titanic feet instantly crushed to death several Vox, then he began kicking, flailing his head, and pecking at the rebels around him, his attacks bursting men open and spilling their insides out, even turning Vox Motorized Patriots into broken toys.

Songbird gently put down Booker and Elizabeth, Elizabeth clutching her dad tightly. When Eleanor saw that, it reminded her of her father. She then felt a rush of compassion and adrenaline, and began hurling explosive fireballs with greater vigour, blasting many undead foes away.

"Just try to keep me from them! Just try!" Eleanor shouted at the Siren's minions.

"Songbird watches all! None can escape his wrath!" the Motorized Patriot Pinkerton Elizabeth summoned earlier exclaimed, trudging to the scene and gunning down a score of undead. Despite heavy damage, he fought on until destroyed by a RPG.

Patriot destroyed, Pinkerton Elizabeth summoned cover for Booker, then she and the revitalized Zachary ran across the scene, firing at the Vox and undead until they could hide behind the summoned cover. They leaned out of cover and continued shooting, protecting Booker and his daughter.

Zachary saw a Vox Motorized Patriot trudging his way towards them, so he took aim and fired at its left knee, his Smith and Wesson Model 29-2 busting the leg open. After a few shots, the leg broke apart, and the mechanical gunner hit the deck. He crawled along while firing his crank gun, but Eleanor quickly flurried explosive fireballs at him and he broke apart at the back.

The team defeated most undead, but then the Siren floated by.

"Come back! COME BACK! No rest until the insects die!" the Siren screamed. Now, many Vox resurrected as her minions.

"She's definitely stronger than I remember!" Pinkerton Elizabeth shouted, reloading her revolver. She scanned the area, then summoned a Mosquito to appear, and it immediately began shooting at the undead.

"And she'll keep coming back until we're dead!" Zachary warned, Smith & Wesson blasting undead down with a single shot. He then threw Old Man Winter, freezing a dozen or so undead in place, giving him time to reload.

Booker and Elizabeth let go of each other, father giving his girl a rough pat on the shoulder before picking up a machine gun and rejoining the fight. After emptying the magazine, Elizabeth handed him another one.

Songbird screamed, crashing down upon a wave of undead. He began swiping his arms and legs wildly all over the place, ripping asunder many undead and Vox soldiers, and shattering to piece the undead Zachary froze. The buzzard flew off, diving into a zeppelin and breaking it.

The Siren reappeared near the end of the bow, and with a mighty shriek, brought back a few dozen undead yet again. They fired at the living relentlessly, and shot down the conjured Mosquito.

"We can't hold up much longer, even with Songbird!" Zachary shouted.

"We gotta destroy the Siphon, now!" Booker shouted, unloading his machine gun upon the undead.

"What?" Zachary yelled, not hearing Booker, casting an electrobolt at the Siren but she did not seem to care.

"Siphon! We destroy it!" Pinkerton Elizabeth yelled, ducking as a sniper's bullet nearly took her head off.

"But we don't have a Whistler! Oh, wait, right! Okay, c'mon! To the bridge!" Zachary yelled, then ran out of cover, shields absorbing fire. His shields slowed down the bullets enough so that they failed to penetrate his cuirass, but left dents and holes in it. One strap over the shoulder was shot off, and the cuirass partly opened up and hung in Booker's way.

"Won't be needing this anymore." He undid his cuirass and tossed it aside, and then Songbird dove, striking the deck with such force he left a big hole in it. The impact caused Booker to stagger, and Songbird had crushed a dozen undead. He then crawled around while pawing furiously, movement alone hurling the Siren's minions down.

"Now's our chance! Go!" Booker yelled, and then he and the Elizabeths sprinted towards the bridge, firing back at gunships.

Booker and Zachary both cast Bucking Bronco downwards, causing the four to fly up back into the bridge. Eleanor teleported up there as well. Although dark outside, there was enough illumination in the bridge to clearly reveal that Zachary and Booker looked identical, something they and the Elizabeths noticed. Their only differences were hair colour and eye colour.

"Alright, you... Who are you, really?" Booker asked, stepping up to Zachary and grabbing his shoulder to get his attention. The two faced each other rather aggressively, noticing the sameness of their faces, but otherwise still gargoyles. Silence between them.

Then, the heavy tuning and static returned, reverberating in the heads of Booker and Zachary. This time, they both grunted from pain, bleeding at the eyes, nose and mouth, and their eyes and veins glowing yellow for a few seconds. Both men felt a rush of memories. Memories of the past and future, of the Booker DeWitt who sought Elizabeth, saved her, and with her discovered his baptism. Neither wiped the blood off one's face, and just stared back at each other, rugged faces bleeding.

"I am..." Zachary said, but could not find it in himself to finish the sentence.

"Booker DeWitt," blue Elizabeth weakly commented, Zachary and Booker looking at her.

"Zachary Comstock," the other Elizabeth said, Booker and Zachary looking at her.

Booker looked at his Elizabeth.

"No, he's...both. I'm both."

The two men stared back at each other. Unpleasant silence.

"No," Booker said, turning around and dismissively waving an arm at Zachary. "No, no, no no no... I'm not you, pal!" He walked away in disbelief, or at least attempted disbelief. He saw Eleanor staring at him with her arms crossed, but did not seem to care much. She slightly tilted her head and raised her eyebrows a little, then looked at Zachary.

"Gentlemen, if I may interrupt your self-realization... What's the plan, now?" Eleanor asked, her hands smoking a little from overuse of Plasmids.

"We fly to Monument Island," Zachary replied, he and Booker looking at each other, "and destroy the Siphon. This is the only way to reach an end, once and for all."

"Sounds easy enough," Eleanor remarked, everyone hearing Songbird crying out, and he flew off to destroy more ships.

Suddenly, the Siren reappeared at the bridge with a scream, the blast staggering everyone.

"Goddammit! She's back!" Booker yelled, firing into the Siren as she summoned several more undead out of nowhere. Zachary and Pinkerton Elizabeth reloaded their revolvers and joined the firefight.

"I have an idea! Cover me!" Pinkerton Elizabeth exclaimed, firing her revolver as she ran around the undead and the Siren. The Bookers opened fire, Zachary hurling Old Man Winter to freeze the undead, and Eleanor keeping the Siren busy by unleashing a rapid flurry of electrobolts.

The Siren screamed again, about to summon more undead, but then Pinkerton Elizabeth jumped at her. Elizabeth rammed her hands into the Siren, hands rippling at a Tear. Howling in terror and agony, the Siren released a powerful shockwave, blasting everyone back several feet and shattering the frozen undead to pieces.

Eleanor landed on her feet, though, and saw Elizabeth open a Tear inside the Siren. The Siren screamed as the Tear reverted the Siren into a ghostly, greyscale, version of Lady Comstock, but the Possession effect was still present. However, the undead she summoned got up as well.

Booker opened fire with his machine gun, Zachary and Pinkerton Elizabeth fired their revolvers, and Eleanor unleashed electrobolts at the Siren and undead, nearly hitting Pinkerton Elizabeth. The attacks destroyed her undead, and the ghostly Lady Comstock staggered backwards from the assault of weaponry, but she remained standing. Many more undead were about to be summoned, to take up the entire space of the bridge.

"I'm sorry!" blue Elizabeth squeaked, running forth, so everyone else stopped shooting, Eleanor pulling back a fireball and causing it to vanish. "I'm sorry...if that helps..." she said quietly, then hesitated, wondering what to say. "You tried to kill me, but...I still forgive you. I just want all this fighting to stop. We all know that, that, that... That creepy man...he wants you to hate us. But you are not like him, you are better than him. Can you forgive me, too, please?" she continued, gently gesticulating with her hands.

Lady Comstock said nothing. She now consisted of distortion and blurriness, phasing in and out of her Siren form, but bled like a fountain from the many bullet holes in her. The Siren inhaled sharply, aura flickering. Eleanor's hands ignited with flames, and the others got ready as the undead arose all around them.

"Wait!" Pinkerton Elizabeth exclaimed, dropping her revolver, "We've been through this before, Annabelle, we can go over this again! We _don't_ want to hurt you! Just like last time, when me and Booker found the truths, we didn't want to hurt you! It's...it was Michael this time. He wants to hurt you, to hurt us. He's still, somehow, doing something to you... Fight him, Annabelle! You are stronger than he is! Let go of him!" Elizabeth encouraged.

The Siren's minions lowered their firearms, and waited, Eleanor keeping an eye on them.

The Siren whimpered, then screamed aloud, another shockwave erupting from her and staggering everyone, even her undead. She slouched, then fell onto a knee, hands hitting the floor.

Pinkerton Elizabeth looked side to side, the undead remaining non-hostile, but their glowing eyes were still creepy. She then carefully approached the Siren, extending an arm to place a hand on the ghost's shoulder. Just before her hand touched her, the Siren raised her head and screamed, the force knocking Elizabeth off her feet. The ghost picked herself up angrily, but then paused, watching as Zachary walked forth, Booker and Eleanor ready to fight, but held back.

"Annabelle! Listen to me! Just listen, please!" Zachary shouted, getting the Siren's attention. He dropped his revolver, then showed his empty hands, slowly approaching the Siren. He then embraced the ghost with a quivering inhale, eyes shutting tightly. "I-I forgave you of everything, in all the worlds, because I loved you, in all the worlds. Always have, always will... I will always forgive you, no matter what. I will always love you, no matter what... Will you?"

After a few seconds, the Siren raised her hands, clutching Zachary's back. Her Possession aura dissipated, easily and calmly, and her minions slowly faded away. Now, it was just Zachary and a ghostly Annabelle, gently swaying in each other's arms.

"Yes..." Annabelle softly answered.

Booker, the Elizabeths, and Eleanor calmed down, Eleanor's fiery Plasmids vanishing from her hands. The Elizabeths sadly walked to Zachary and Annabelle, the two slowly letting go of each other, but still holding hands.

Zachary just solemnly stared into the glowing eyes of the ghost that was once his beloved, little wife. He lowered his head, resting his forehead on Annabelle's. Lady Comstock then slouched, knees buckling.

"Annabelle..." Zachary cried, holding the Siren, then gently laying her down on her back. The Siren coughed.

The Elizabeths' head and shoulders dropped a bit, moved by the sight. Booker remained stone faced, and Eleanor could not stop thinking about Mother. Eleanor made puppy dog eyes, and slightly sucked in her lips.

 _They really loved each other, but... Is the door still open for...Mother?_ she wondered. She reflected how Mother said she would never forgive her after they escaped Rapture. But, seeing such love and forgiveness in front of her, Eleanor knew she could not be wrong, could she? She felt guilty for slapping Mother, and trying to choke her to death. Eleanor's eyes got shiny, but she held in her regrets, stroking a few fingers over her ear. Turning her head, Eleanor watched as Pinkerton Elizabeth put her hands together, wanting to say something.

"Michael...is dead. He won't cause you suffering anymore," Pinkerton Elizabeth said, hearing rockets exploding in the skies far away.

"No, Vay Atar will return. He cannot die. He always comes again, and again, and again..." the Siren warned, then coughed. "That's how he brought me back, he never gives up... I tried to stop him, not only in this world... He always brought me back to relive my suffering, my rage, my regret..."

"Then...how do we stop him?" Pinkerton Elizabeth asked with a frown.

The Siren shifted, slowly and painfully, Zachary not letting go of her. The Siren weakly pointed at Elizabeth, then at the other one.

"Both...at the same time...open a Tear in him..." the Siren said.

"Is that even possible?" blue Elizabeth asked.

"Find out, child. Find out..." The Siren softly exhaled, then her head went limp.

"A-Anna...Ahn-n-n-abelle? Annabelle, I-I-I, I... I'm so sorry, for everything... Please don't leave me, Annabelle..." Zachary whispered.

She weakly raised a hand and placed it on Zachary's cheek, ghostly eyes shiny. Zachary wrapped his arms around the Siren, lowered his head, and kissed his wife, both of them closing their eyes as teardrops came. She slid her hand up his cheek, then held the back of his head. After a few seconds, their lips parted, and their eyes slightly opened.

"I... I, I finally saved you, Zachary..." Annabelle Watson said, and then she faded away.

Zachary was left on his knees, holding air. His head and arms dropped, and just knelt there.

Pinkerton Elizabeth looked away, wiping teardrops from her eyes. She then placed her hand on Zachary's shoulder, feeling him put his hand over hers. She never saw anyone look so...crushed.

The other Elizabeth kept her hands together, trying not to cry, but her eyes were shiny.

"At least you're safe," Booker commented.

"We still need to destroy the Siphon. It's the only way to end all of this, once and for all," Zachary said normally as he picked himself up. He regained his composure rather quickly. He then ran to the big wheel and gave it a big spin. The flagship turned.

"You know how to fly that thing?" Booker asked.

"Well, it's my ship..." Zachary mumbled.

"Alright, back to work," Eleanor said, then she, Booker and Pinkerton Elizabeth took cover behind the broken front of the bridge, and continued the gunfight against the Vox in their gunships.

Eleanor hurled fiery and electric Plasmids, Booker fired a carbine his Elizabeth threw him, Pinkerton Elizabeth used her _Ambassador_ revolver, and Songbird continued destroying enemy airships when able.

As Zachary steered the flagship through Columbia, Monument Island became visible.

"There it is," Zachary remarked, steering the flagship straight to the island. Wind and snow flurried into the bridge, and the lightning and thunder amplified.

"How do we destroy that, exactly?" Booker asked.

"Simple. I'll pull down a statue, and get its Whistler. Just like last time, Songbird will destroy the Siphon," Pinkerton Elizabeth stated, glad that Michael was dead. Now, nothing would stop them from destroying the Siphon. Elizabeth would regain her powers, and they would fix everything.

Everyone looked outside, seeing several Vox ships bombard the _Hand of the Prophet_. The generator promptly exploded.

"Oh, shit! I forgot about the generator!" Zachary yelled, the entire flagship losing power with a mighty groan. Everyone felt the ship begin to gradually tilt forwards, and the Vox continued barraging the ship.

The _Hand of the Prophet_ was crashing, and everyone aboard felt the flooring tilt, the hull goraning, rockets blasting over the bridge.

"Flagship down! Flagship down!" the distorted PA sounded, "All hands, brace for impact!"

Everyone felt their blood rush as the _Hand of the Prophet_ tilted downwards more and more, revealing more of the flaming city below: smoke, fire, skyscrapers, roads. The Whistler statue fell over then slid down the bridge, Elizabeth reaching for it, but it rolled past her.

"Oh, no! No, no, no!" Pinkerton Elizabeth shouted, the statue sliding out the bridge, breaking from the fall, then the parts slid off the flagship, along with many corpses and fallen weapons.

"No! Dammit! Michael was right! We're too late!" Pinkerton Elizabeth exclaimed, feeling her heart stop and skin crawl. Without acquiring a Whistler, there was no way to make Songbird destroy the Siphon.

"Not if I can help it!" Zachary exclaimed, giving the steering wheel a sharp turn, holding it steady so that it remained aligned towards Monument Island.

"What are you doing?" Eleanor asked.

"We're destroying the Siphon, one way or another! Alright, everyone, hang on!" Zachary warned.

It took everyone a second to realize what he meant. So, they balanced themselves, grabbing onto the broken front of the bridge as the Vox continued bombarding it, and the flagship continued to tilt downwards into a dive

"Ohhhh- _hhhhh_ shhhhhiiiit!" Booker exclaimed as the _Hand of the Prophet_ began to nosedive into Monument Island. The flagship's warning siren made everything worse.

Zachary ended up lying over the steering wheel once the flagship became vertical, the others holding onto the sections of the broken bridge, everyone hanging on for dear life.

Both Elizabeths and Booker screamed, Eleanor and Zachary hoping for the best as the flagship poked its nose into the giant statue's head. Many tonnes rammed down into Monument Island, causing it to violently nudge downwards and descend from so much weight, but it was nonetheless split open.

Chunks of construction and fiery debris rained down, and then the flagship penetrated into the Siphon. An electrostatic discharge promptly erupted. Blueness and whiteness swirled and flickered everywhere chaotically, lighting up the night sky, the eruption louder than the thunder.

The front third of the _Hand of the Prophet_ was reduced to shreds and flames. The flagship was now diving down to the burning city.

" _Ahh!_ Elizabeth!" Booker yelled, trying to hold onto whatever he could, but everyone ended up falling faster than the flagship.

Songbird wailed, diving after the flagship as fast as he could.

"Booker!" the two Elizabeths yelled at the same time.

" _ELLIZZABEHHHTH!_ " the two Bookers screamed as everyone began plummeting.

Everyone screamed, the _Hand of the Prophet_ above them, and the flaming city below...


	29. Chapter 29 - Revelations

Seconds before plummeting into flaming ruins, Eleanor teleported down to the streets. She looked up, seeing a spherical Tear bubble into existence. The Elizabeths and Bookers fell into the sphere, instantly disappearing into it, but the Tear remained floating around. Songbird swooped down, movement blowing air upon Eleanor, but then the buzzard took off, looking for Elizabeth.

"Oh, thank goodness! I suppose I could simply teleport into that Tear as well," Eleanor said to herself, but then, she felt something. She turned around, only seeing smoke and darkness.

The echoes of aerial combat, sirens, and destruction reverberated throughout Manhattan, but the chaos did not disrupt something inside Eleanor. She looked back at the spherical Tear, then away. She did not know how or why, but she just had a feeling she had to go somewhere. So she did, following her instinct, disappearing into the darkness and smoke.

* * *

Booker thought he touched Elizabeth's hand before he fell to his death. Flashbacks of his plummet stormed his mind, reliving as he reached for her. Instead, he found himself lying facedown in his...office? Groaning, he picked himself up, regaining his senses. There was a huge hole in the building, revealing the chaos and destruction outside. Apparently, DeWitt Investigations existed in modern-day New York?

"Elizabeth?" Booker called. Nothing. He walked forth, coughing, looking around. He explored the destroyed building, making his way across sections of destroyed flooring, sometimes climbing over piles of rubble, jumping over broken piping, shielding himself from flames, sometimes calling for Elizabeth.

Going down the next hallway, Booker then looked around the next section of ruined architecture. The ceiling was gone, and the area covered with snow. Booker felt the chill of wind and snow. At the end of the area, standing before a drop-off, overlooking the chaos and destruction, was...

"As you can see, Booker, the lunatics always end up running the asylum, no matter if they are lawmen or criminals... They never even listen to me. I always failed." Her voice no longer had the spark of life and curiosity. It was hollow, slightly hoarse, hopeless. "Every single time, I could only watch...as what _he_ set in motion...descends into its terminal fate."

"Elizabeth!" Booker called, rushing onwards, but the stairs were gone. "Elizabeth? What happened? We were falling, I-I tried to grab you..."

"Shhh, Booker... I know what happened. It took everything left in me to save you," she spoke kindly, spreading her hands apart, dress waving in the wind.

"E-Elizabeth, I-I..." He sighed, then hesitated. "I... I don't understand. I don't know what's going on," he admitted.

"Booker, here...take my hand." She lowered, offering her hand to help lift Booker up the ruins. He grabbed her hand, gently, the flames illuminating her face. She looked so old and hurt, face mapped with age as well as scars. She had white hair, bloodshot eyes, dark circles, and eye bags. She looked absolutely horrible.

Booker's heart skipped a beat, and he felt his blood pressure skyrocket. Seeing his daughter so old and fragile was in itself a heavy punishment. Despite her old age and deterioration, she did not struggle helping him up, still quite strong for her size and age.

After helping Booker up, the old lady overlooked the destruction of the city and battle between the Vox and Columbia, putting her arms behind her back, left hand holding her right wrist. Booker saw Songbird flying off in the distance, fighting the Vox Populi, who seemed endless.

Most of the Founder flotilla was already destroyed or had its crews killed. A majority of the Vox airships targeted Songbird, pummeling the buzzard like crazy in all directions. The Bird was smoking, but still fighting, seeking his friend. The old lady sighed, head and shoulders dropping. She turned around while shaking her head.

"Elizabeth, I still don't understand... What's going on? Please, tell me!"

She sadly stared back at Booker, then looked to the side. Booker turned his head, seeing Zachary and blue Elizabeth approaching the scene from a hallway.

"Elizabeth? That you? Have you seen Eleanor?" Zachary called, he and blue Elizabeth stopping nearby, and they just stared at the old Elizabeth. Zachary's eyebrows raised. Seeing an old, pained Elizabeth was a real punch in the gut. Did she end up like him? His gaze lowered when the old lady just sadly stared at him. 

" _The seed of the prophet shall sit the throne, and drown in flames the mountains of man..._ " old Elizabeth quoted, Zachary looking away. "Say what you will about Comstock. He was a hell of a fortune-teller. Not even Spirry could get around that."

"Spirry? Who's that?" blue Elizabeth asked. Her old equivalent seemed to hesitate, then everyone looked to the side, seeing Pinkerton Elizabeth quietly walking to the scene from a large crack in the wall.

Pinkerton Elizabeth furrowed her eyebrows as she approached the scene. Seeing an older version of herself was unpleasant, reminding her of her own developing wrinkles.

Old Elizabeth looked at blue Elizabeth.

"A monster," the old lady answered weakly, getting the Bookers' attention. "But it wasn't _he_ who broke me," she said, then looked at Zachary. "It wasn't the torture that broke me. It wasn't the indoctrination." Zachary looked away. "It was time," she admitted to everyone while briefly and slightly raising her hands. "Time eventually destroys everything. Everything. Especially hope."

Pinkerton Elizabeth's head lowered, as did Zachary's. _Hope..._ That was something neither of them truly felt in a long time.

"Elizabeth... I'm so sorry..." Zachary apologized, taking a step closer to the old Elizabeth, and gently placing a hand on her shoulder. Her head and shoulders lowered.

"I know, Comstock. I know." old Elizabeth whispered.

Pinkerton Elizabeth had flashbacks of her betrayal of Zachary in Rapture. It did not make her feel good.

"But we have to leave the past in the past. _He_ is coming," old Elizabeth said, turning around to look up into the sky.

Everyone else also looked up in the crazy sky, seeing strange things appearing. Chains gradually descended from various sections of the Tear-effected night sky, the links perhaps two feet wide, and the chains several hundred feet long.

The immense chains suspended from Tears swayed in the wind, but some slithered downwards or curved side to side on their own accord. The jingles and clicking of chains echoed in the wind.

Lightning struck here and there, and batches of chains swung down, lassoing onto some airships. The Vox had no idea what was going on, some airships flying into nets of chains and becoming entrapped in them.

Rotating metal columns began to descend from the sky, covered with long, narrow, mechanical limbs ending in lights, spikes, wires, or blades, reminding Booker and blue Elizabeth of the strange machinery they had witnessed in the great pyramid of the jungle world. Then, metal spheres covered in roller chains floated out the Tears. The roller chains extended, then slithered outwards, making the strange contraptions look like flying metal jellyfish.

Then, narrow mechanical limbs up to a hundred feet long whipped out from the Tears, the snap of whipping echoing. The mechanical limbs terminated into clawed, hooked, bladed, spiked, or forked tips. The strange machinery flicked at various Vox crews.

The Bookers and Elizabeths could do nothing as the mechanical limbs latched onto or skewered some of the Vox, then pulling them into the air kicking and screaming. After a few seconds, the machinery grasped them firmly, then ripped them open and apart, guns and guts dropping. A portion of mechanical limbs now swayed in the wind, dripping blood, now flexible shish kebabs of body parts and organs.

The grotesque butchery caused blue Elizabeth to cover her mouth with both hands. The Bookers and Pinkerton Elizabeth were quite concerned, finding it hard to believe what they were seeing.

"Spirry wanted you to destroy the Siphon. Not only did the Siphon limit our powers, but also his. Now, he will eventually control all the Tears, prevent us from opening them, and then... This will be the last time I witness his history..." old Elizabeth explained.

"Huh... So that's why I couldn't open a Tear while falling," blue Elizabeth mumbled.

"Wait, wait, wait!" Booker exclaimed, then hesitated. "W-What... What the hell is going on?" he whispered, trying to figure out what he beheld. Every few seconds, a few more mechanical limbs, or floating mechanical contraptions, appeared. Some of the more gigantic chains began curling around skyscrapers, smaller ones slithering into windows.

All of this was simply unbelievable.

"Songbird is somewhere in the skies. He can help us! He always helps us," blue Elizabeth said, rather spooked.

"Songbird always failed. Not even Songbird could stop _him_ ," old Elizabeth replied. Booker and Zachary were concerned upon hearing that.

"We have to find this Spirry guy and get rid of him ourselves, then!" Zachary almost yelled. "I'll skin him, shoot him, smother him, drown him, rip him apart..."

Old Elizabeth's head lowered.

"You can't kill him."

"I'll find a way, just watch," Zachary assured, but old Elizabeth just shook her head hopelessly.

"There is a way," Pinkerton Elizabeth firmly stated, everyone looking at her. "The Siphon is still destroyed. Even if he will control all the Tears in due time, even if I still can't see behind all the doors, I can still... Go back, before all of this started," she continued with a little uneasiness. "What we had done to Booker, before he was reborn... Will work with Spirry, before whatever rebirth he had. I know it. I will make him disappear."

"The Luteces already tried to work with him, just as they worked with Comstock and used Booker. The Luteces failed. Spirry is beyond all of us," old Elizabeth warned.

"Well, the Luteces aren't me, and Spirry doesn't know me," Pinkerton Elizabeth said, looking at her partly missing pinky. "I can't feel the doors right now, but I will, soon."

When Pinkerton Elizabeth looked up, she saw huge, strange creatures starting to climb down the chains here and there, numbering several dozen so far. Hidden by darkness and smoke, the creatures could not be seen, but were apelike, and much larger and taller than humans. 

"What the hell are those?" Zachary asked.

"Nothin' friendly, that's for sure," Booker remarked.

The creatures breathed loudly and some howled, sounding something between the scream of a gorilla and a human. Some leapt off the chains, landing on airships then charging the crew, who fired at them. 

Then, everyone heard rapid tapping sounds getting louder and louder.

"What's that sound?" blue Elizabeth asked.

Zachary, Booker and Pinkerton Elizabeth withdrew their revolvers. Zachary and Booker leaned over the drop-off to look down. They saw silhouettes moving through the smoke, flames flickering illumination, revealing the creatures to be skinless and fleshy.

"Dammit, they're climbing up the building!" Booker warned, old Elizabeth putting her hands together and stepping away from the ledge nervously.

Those with revolvers aimed down and fired. Growling sounded, then Booker, Zachary and Pinkerton Elizabeth stepped away from the ledge. Three of the creatures appeared, revealing their appearance. They seemed to be immense, long-limbed, muscular, skinless, humanoids, but their large skulls did not have eye sockets or a nasal cavity. They did not have lips or cheeks either, gorillian teeth always visible. The creatures were around nine feet tall, and they had bone claws at the fingers and toes. Their faceless faces had bullet holes.

The monsters reared their heads, growling loudly. Zachary threw Old Man Winter, freezing one solid, whilst the two others crawled forth, mouths agape and breathing heavily and rapidly. Booker and Pinkerton Elizabeth fired at one, bullets thudding into its head and shoulders, but doing little. Zachary fired at the other, his beefy revolver poking a hole into the other beast's skull, hole leaking blood, but it continued crawling.

"Hands and mouths!" Booker yelled, so he and Pinkerton Elizabeth fired at his monster's hands, shooting off some fingers. After losing half a hand, the monster's chin hit the floor and it grunted. The two then fired at its hanging jaw, shooting a few teeth off and breaking the jawbone, but the damn beast did not lose consciousness. A bullet into the mouth did not even stop it!

Everyone walked backwards, away from the two crawling monsters, those with guns shooting, and the Elizabeths in blue hiding behind Booker. Zachary threw a charged Shock Jockey, and it erupted, electrifying the two beasts on the spot. They growled while clawing sporadically.

Booker took the advantage, slipping his Sky-Hook on his left hand and giving one monster a few whacks across the head. Ramming the spinner into the monster's throat, he gave it a whirl, ripping the monster's trachea apart. Suffocation would finish the beast soon enough, Zachary's Vigor's electricity soon stopping.

After being shot in the neck several times, the other beast fell over, jerking madly. This gave time for everyone to reload their revolvers.

The frozen monster soon broke free of its icy tomb, and was targeted by concentrated fire. The revolvers shot its skull open, blood, cerebrospinal fluid, and brains spattering out, and it fell over twitching and pawing at the air. All three beasts needed to be shot in the head to finally stop moving.

"Jeez! They sure don't die easy!" Zachary said.

"Wouldn't wanna let them get close to ya," Booker remarked, then realizing he was running out of hand cannon ammo.

"Booker, catch!" blue Elizabeth chirped, throwing Booker a box of bullets.

"Much obliged!"

"Hunh...guess the machinery takes care of the airships, and these fleshy monsters run amok in the city," Zachary said to himself, then groaned. "I hope Sofia and Eleanor are alright..."

"Also explains why Spirry brought the Vox back: to fight the Founder flotilla. Sneaky bastard wanted to maximise damage to everyone before making his move," Pinkerton Elizabeth said. "There's no way anyone's going to survive an attack by these creatures."

"Then we better get moving. We can't save everyone, but we can at least get out of this city alive," Booker said, looking for an exit, but not knowing where to start.

"Hold on," Pinkerton Elizabeth said, everyone looking at her, "I can feel the doors. I'll find Spirry, whoever he is, and make sure he never existed. This failed for Booker, but this time, I know it can work."

Old Elizabeth grabbed Pinkerton Elizabeth's shoulder, and the two looked at each other.

"Please, don't try it. I already did, so many times, and I always failed. You can't kill him. None of us can. You will only see the nightmares he created," old Elizabeth warned. Pinkerton Elizabeth shrugged the old lady's arm off.

"I need to _see_. I can't _see_ him, but I can feel him," Pinkerton Elizabeth said.

"Wait a minute... You can't see him, but you can feel him? How does that work?" Booker asked.

"Sometimes, you just need a leap of faith. I can do this," Pinkerton Elizabeth assured. She holstered her gun, then grasped the air, and pulled open a Tear. The Tear resembled a silhouette that cast a shadowy aura, and blood steadily trickled out of it. Mechanical noise echoed from the Tear. Elizabeth smirked, crossing her arms and turning around to face everyone. Even the old crone was surprised.

"There we go. Told you I could do this. I learned how to open Shadow Tears. Spirry's in there, I can feel it. I have to _see_ what he truly is. It's the only way to-" Mechanical limbs shot out the Shadow Tear, entwining Pinkerton Elizabeth, then pulled her in. She and the Tear vanished.


	30. Chapter 30 - Twist of Fate

The mechanical things pulled her into a cold, dark, damp world, a red spotlight cast upon her. Pinkerton Elizabeth fell onto her front, face slapping against a wet floor, as her arms were still bound against her body. The mechanical limbs dragged her through the darkness, and all Elizabeth could do was helplessly squirm.

"Booker!" Elizabeth cried, hearing her voice echo, but there was no reply. She tried to wriggle free, but the mechanical limbs gripped her tightly, and painfully.

Elizabeth tried to see what was going on, but there was mostly just darkness everywhere. Sometimes, she saw swaying light blinking here and there, which gave sporadic, brief illumination. Soon, her clothes and hair felt soaked, and she smelled blood.

Despite her entrapment, she managed to form a Tear. The Tear affected the mechanical things, distorting them between the past and present. This allowed Elizabeth to writhe free, whatever having grabbed her moving on without her. She rolled sideways, got up, and ran away, covering her mouth with her arm, breathing through the cloth to filter the smell of blood a little.

"Where am I? Uhh...look what you got yourself into..." she mumbled to herself. But, she was a tough little lady, and it would take more than a dark world to break her.

Directly ahead of her, she could see lighting, so instinctively headed for it. The blinking lights revealed narrow mechanical things hanging from the darkness above, sometimes hanging in batches, sometimes slightly spaced apart. Some reached the floor, others ended several feet above the floor, and a portion lied for several feet along the floor.

The hanging things consisted of various types of chains and machinery: roller chains, immense lengths of coiled wiring, jack chains, gear trains, valves, pistons, pivots, rotaries, timing belts, tubes, pulleys, flickering fluorescent tubes, transistors, circuits, and God knows what else. Sometimes, electric arcs formed between the mechanical things. She noticed that some of the mechanical lengths swayed on their own, or slithered on the spot. They reminded her of what she had seen hanging from the sky in New York.

To make things worse, she did not know why, but Elizabeth had a feeling she was being watched. Off in the distance, looking through the forest of hanging things, she saw the silhouette of someone. The silhouette was quite huge, and she could hear steady beating. _Duhn, duh...duhn, duh...duhn, duh...duhn, duh..._ A loud heartbeat? The flickering lights never revealed much, but it seemed that the silhouette was something big and red.

The silhouette then started walking towards Elizabeth, bulky frame causing the mechanical things in its way to swing away. Turning around, Elizabeth ran off, pushing herself through the suspended vines of machinery.

"Where the hell am I?" she asked herself nervously, feeling her heart jumping into her throat.

She ran into a set of mechanical things that refused to budge, bouncing off it, then paused. Lights nearby flickered, revealing silhouettes of arms, legs, heads, split torsos, scalps, hearts, brains, internal organs, rib cages, spines, pelvises, eyeballs, curtains of skin, and other bodily things caught in the machinery.

All the mechanical lengths around Elizabeth gently swayed or slithered on their own, sometimes wrapping around each other. She turned around, seeing more of the machinery decorated with body parts, guts, and bones, intestines wiggling amongst them. The machinery was moving, encircling Elizabeth.

A few more lights flickered here and there. A few zaps and sparks came. Elizabeth heard the heartbeat again. She didn't want to look, but she heard the hanging machinery swaying, rattling midair, and footfall accompanied by clicking sounds.

She didn't know where to go, so she stepped backwards, away from the footfall. Her back touched something moist, warm, and poky. She breathed slowly and heavily, sternum churning, blood tingling under her skin, the swaying machinery of macabre closing in on her.

As fluorescent tubes flickered, she saw the immense silhouette again, walking gently through the mechanical lengths, sometimes grasping them and sliding its hands down them. _He_ walked diagonally across her, heartbeat, breathing and footfall louder and louder, her eyes locked on _his_ flickering frame. Forehead sweating, Elizabeth looked away, eyes big and shiny.

"You wanted to _see_..." a deep, gurgly voice spoke, Elizabeth feeling blood spatter over the side of her face and shoulder.

More machinery closed in, drenched in blood, covered with chunks of bodies. _He_ just stood there, nine feet tall, and he slowly leaned over Elizabeth. She felt his breath flow down her shirt. Her eyes darted amongst the mechanical lengths swaying with body parts.

Elizabeth looked at _him_. He was horrible to look at, more of an animal than a person, his heart always audibly beating, which Elizabeth found quite unnerving. He stood at nine feet tall, powerfully built, yet had a narrow waist. His skinless flesh had a milky texture, all the bulging veins blue. His forehead was roundly large and elongated, smoothly curving down to his mouth. He had nostrils, but no nose.

His eye sockets were empty, replaced with cracked glass lenses that currently shone bright yellow, shining upon Elizabeth's face. He had a rather small mouth, lips unable to cover his serpentine fangs and reptilian teeth. His mouth was constantly leaking blood, always bloody from chin to crotch.

He wore a sleeveless black leather duster, left unbuttoned down the front, and black leather pants, but no shoes, standing on his elongated clawed forefoot. He did not have a belt, his pants instead having a series of hooks set into his flesh. Instead of tendons, he had thin wire rope, visible over his pale tissue.

A glass shield took the place of his belly, the top bolted into his rib cage, the bottom bolted into his hips, his internal organs and beating visible through the glass. Curiously enough, his heart, lungs, liver, kidneys, spleen, bladder, gall bladder, appendix, and colon, all writhed constantly, he also having a uterus despite being male. His organs were dark cyan in color, and had orange spots down the sides.

Elizabeth heard static and tuning, faint but screechy. This time, it did not come from her. It came from _him_. Indistinct yellow lightning shone out his mouth and veins. Blood began leaking out his mouth and nostrils, through the cracks in his glass eyes, and even bubbled out wherever his veins were present.

" _Now_ you see," he said, then slowly cocked his head, and grinned, blood leaking in-between his reptile teeth. After a moment, he looked down, seeing a big revolver planted against his heart.

She kept pulling the trigger. The third shot brought him down to one knee. Elizabeth then began shooting him in the head, but even after emptying the chambers, with blood gushing out his big head, he did not hit the floor.

Without thinking, Elizabeth dove to the side just as various mechanical lengths whipped forth, striking Spirry instead of her. They drilled into him, but he simply ripped them out of himself and stood up. The yellow beaming out his eyes scanned the area, the machinery swaying, but Elizabeth was simply gone. She simply vanished, just like she used to do with Booker and Zachary ten years ago.

"Where are you? This should not have happened, the Cipher remains unbroken. Hmm..." Spirry huffed, looking side to side. Clasping his hands behind his back, he walked through the machinery, wondering where the girl went.

Elizabeth kept running and panting, until her lungs and feet stung. She ran around a knotted section of mechanical things, breathing heavily. Hands shaking, she opened her revolver, empty shells falling out, then reloaded her gun.

"He sure as hell won't be ripping me apart alive..."

After catching her breath, Elizabeth noticed a...leak? She stepped to the source of leaking, which had already made a puddle. It didn't look like blood. She extended her empty left hand, feeling the liquid rinse off the blood. She then brought her hand to her lips, and tasted the liquid.

"Salty water?" she asked, quite confused.

Unable to figure it out, she holstered her gun and continued her walk, and promptly tripped over the tip of a mechanical length. As she fell, she instinctively extended her hands to catch something, but only felt her hands get scraped open by the mechanical things.

Elizabeth's cut hands slapped against the flooring, splashing blood over her face and chest, causing her to close her eyes, frown, and clench her teeth from disgust. As blood dripped down her face, Elizabeth opened her eyes, and saw someone staring back at her.

Elizabeth reared her head, pausing with a disgusted look. There was a huge skinless face under a crevice in the floor, absent of eyelids. The mouth was open, bundled wiring visibly going from underneath the flooring into the face's mouth. The eyeballs were moving up and down slowly, cluelessly.

Getting up, Elizabeth walked backwards, away from that weird face, and then felt one foot not touch anything.

"Oh-whoa!" She fell backwards off a ledge, pawing at the air, then splat on a soft, wet, warm surface. She sat up, feeling her hair stick to her neck. The reek of blood was so strong here, she gagged.

Looking up, Elizabeth could see that the mechanical lengths did not hang down to here, but the flickering lights still illuminated whatever area Elizabeth had fallen into. She clenched her hands against the ground, and felt...teeth? She looked down, seeing the fingers of her right hand gripping a jaw, feeling the teeth and tongue.

Looking around herself, Elizabeth realized she had fallen onto a ground made of skinless, grotesque, twisted, distorted faces. The faces were compressed so tightly together, some bent in odd angles, or were missing jaws. Many of the faces were breathing steadily, and some slid their long, skinny tongues in and out.

" _Uugh!_ " Elizabeth exclaimed, pulling her hands to her chest, raising her shoulders, and standing up. She began tap dancing, trying to not stand on an ugly face, but no matter where she put her feet, she stood on something's face, high heels digging into eyes and mouths.

Few by few, the grotesque faces began opening their tiny eyes, all of them staring at Elizabeth. She froze. Then, few by few, the faces began squirming against themselves, but they were quite stuck. Feeling them vibrate under her feet was not a welcoming sign.

Turning around to see where she had fallen off from, Elizabeth saw a wall of vertical bars, going off in either direction endlessly. Packed behind the bars were skinless, fleshy bodies, totally deformed and stretched out in awkward angles. Many arms and legs stuck out from behind the bars, slowly reaching out to Elizabeth, some faces groaning. More and more faces behind the bars, and underneath Elizabeth, began groaning as well.

"Oh, c'mon, come on, please, please, please..." Elizabeth quivered, unable to stop herself from shaking, gripping the air and trying to open a Tear. But nothing happened. She grunted from anger and fear.

" _UUUHHHNNNNNN..._ " something groaned loudly, Elizabeth feeling warm, stinky air flow past her, causing her to retch.

Once she knew she would not puke, Elizabeth paused, hesitated, then slowly turned her head, two giant yellow spotlights beaming upon her. Her mouth dropped at what she saw.

Towering above her, was some sort of skull-shaped metal mask made of crisscrossing metal bars, the mask perhaps twenty feet tall and sixteen feet wide. The mask had lenses for the eyes, currently beaming yellow.

Wearing the mask was a mountain of deformed, skinless, fleshy bodies, mashed together into a single mass, with arms, legs, and heads were sticking out everywhere. The arms and legs served as locomotion, and the giant monster slowly crawled towards Elizabeth, moving alongside the wall. The arms atop it sometimes grasped the hanging mechanical things and pulled on them. Sliding in and out of the mask's mouth were a pair of fifteen-foot-long skinless arms, grasping the floor of faces to pull itself faster.

"Uhhh...nuh-uh..." Elizabeth steadily jogged away, not caring that her high heels were crushing eyeballs and digging into faces.

It was not long until she saw bodies gradually emerging from the fleshy ground. The bodies were quite gangly, seven feet tall but extremely skinny, little more than elongated skeletons with tendons, veins, tiny organs, and a thin layer of flesh. Several of the grotesque, deformed things walked after Elizabeth, their movement twitchy and awkward, joints constantly making popping sounds.

Elizabeth didn't wait. She pulled out her revolver and opened fire. After emptying her chambers, she had shot dead only three monsters. One of the things dropped on its hands, and crawled at Elizabeth with surprising speed. She skipped backwards, but it grabbed her legs and wanted to bite her crotch. Grimacing and making weird desperate noises, Elizabeth repeatedly clubbed the ugly thing with her revolver. She soon managed to slip away, but the monster crawled after her.

Two dozen feet away, the giant masked monster continued crawling in all its ugly glory, sometimes snailing over the skinny monsters and crushing them. The giant monster's speed gradually increased, and one by one, more of the skinny monsters began uprooting.

Sensing a Tear, Elizabeth instantly snapped it into existence. A Motorized Patriot stepped forth, and Elizabeth ran past it.

"For the glory of Columbia, death to the Lovecraftian spawn!" he exclaimed, crank gun ripping. He gunned down most of the skinny monsters. Those that reached him, he simply swatted down with his gun, then stomped on them.

The Patriot's weight caused him to sink into the fleshy floor, but he continued shooting as the giant masked monster loomed over him. He did not relent, and continued firing into the juggernaut, even as the skinny monsters leapt upon him.

The masked monster's mouth-arms extended, grabbing the Patriot's legs and pulling him down. He sat up, and continued firing at point-blank range. The many arms sticking out the mountain of flesh clutched at him and his gun, gradually disarming him. He punched back at the things, grabbing arms and heads and cracking them, but he was overcome.

Elizabeth continued running, sometimes losing her footing or almost tripping, but managed to stay on her feet.

 _No way I'm falling down on those faces..._ she promised herself.

Off in the distance, the flickering lights from above revealed groups of more skinny monsters running towards her, screeching and wheezing. She gasped, and skid to a stop.

"I'm surrounded..." Elizabeth said to herself. She checked her pockets, but could not feel any bullets. Her heart dropped. "No! I'm not going to die here!" she exclaimed at her foes, refusing to be a frightened girl.

Suddenly, she felt something, and made a Mosquito appear. It flew quite low, firing at the incoming enemies, so Elizabeth did the only thing she could think of. She holstered her revolver, then jumped upon the Mosquito, hugging the cords holding the balloons, and feeling the rotary shred the edge of her skirt.

Up the Mosquito flew, slowly but steadily, Elizabeth with it. She lifted her shoulders as the monsters jumped up at her, but the rotary chopped into their fingers, and continued flying and shooting. She sighed with relief.

 _Good thing I'm so small..._

Once she could reach the hanging machinery, Elizabeth sat on the Mosquito and grabbed the mechanical things, pulling them, and so guiding the Mosquito where to fly. She was able to drag herself away from the giant masked monster. Not even that could do anything now!

Elizabeth soon reached the level of flooring she had fallen from, and hopped down there. While the Mosquito kept the monsters busy, Elizabeth ran as fast as she could, skipping in-between the machinery hanging everywhere.

"The only way out of here is through a Tear..." she whispered to herself. Elizabeth focused hard, raising her hands, and clutched the fabric of space-time. She pulled, hard. Nothing. She flicked her hands at the air in frustration, then put them on her hips. "Oh, come on, we were doing so well a few minutes ago... Oh well, no point staying here."

As Elizabeth made her way through the forest of hanging metal things, she heard rattling behind her. She stopped with an inhale, and listened. The machinery behind her moved around noisily, accompanied by clanking. Something was approaching her.

"Spirry..."

She hid behind a hanging batch of mechanical things. Leaning out of cover, she could see something moving through the mechanical lengths. Amidst the flickering lights, Elizabeth could make out that the thing had a mechanical serpentine body, perhaps two feet thick. The body had a length of twenty feet, but the tail gradually curled upwards and was so long it disappeared into the darkness above. Instead of a snake head was a giant mechanical hand, reminding Elizabeth of a Handyman's hand. The fingers served as its means of locomotion.

The hand rested on its thumb, then the four fingers began tapping against the floor. Impatient? The mechanical serpent slowly reared, holding its head-hand up, then the fingers uncurled. The palm revealed a large lens that opened, beaming a yellow light. Beneath the lens seemed to be a mouth-like opening, and slithering in and out were a series of mechanical lengths similar to those hanging everywhere, but much smaller.

"Huh... _That's_ what grabbed me..." Elizabeth whispered, then heard the serpent roar like a car engine, smoke flowing out its mouth, its light turning red.

Elizabeth held her breath, regretting she had opened her mouth. The red lighting waved side to side, but did not seem to notice her.

" _Vurr-rrr..._ " the serpent growled, lighting changing to yellow.

The yellow spotlight travelled along the flooring here and there. Elizabeth moved her head behind her cover as the spotlight shone across her hiding spot, but nothing happened. After a few seconds, the serpent suddenly closed its hand. Elizabeth peeked, seeing the hand open up suddenly, and her eyebrows raised. The thing _opened up a Tear!_

Through the Tear, Elizabeth could see a street of New York, and saw someone quickly walking down the street, a young brunette in jeans and a black shirt.

"Eleanor..." Elizabeth whispered as the serpent slid through the Tear. The Tear remained open, but only the front half of the serpent went beyond the Tear. The rest of its body remained somewhere up above in the darkness.

"Ughh, that stupid snake thing takes up all the space in the Tear. I can't sit around here..." Elizabeth whispered. _Well then, now's my chance..._ Elizabeth thought to herself, and scurried away. She smiled.

 _Maybe I can't control all the Tears, but I still have my wish-fulfillment!_

Scurrying off yet again, she later heard...chiming? It sounded like a children's xylophone. It quietly echoed, having a soothing but hopeless feel. The gentle music was Chopin's Nocturne in E-flat major, opus 9, number 2, played slowly.

Elizabeth followed the music, legs feeling like jelly after so much running and walking. After a few minutes, she sighed with relief. The forest of hanging mechanical things ended up ahead. Although it was just darkness over there, it was better than being surrounded by machinery that potentially wanted to butcher people alive.

Excitedly running, almost tripping a few times, Elizabeth escaped the horrid vines. She then heard...waves? She walked forth, rather confused. She soon found herself staring at a vast, dark ocean, the waters aggressive and chaotic. Big waves smashed against the island, throwing water high into the air. The sky was cloudy, flashing with lightning here and there, yet it was silent.

When Elizabeth looked out in the waters, the lightning allowed her to see the silhouettes of skeletal corpses floating underneath the water's surface. Creepily enough, all the corpses appeared to be trying to swim, yet they moved so slowly, and could never surface.

Elizabeth walked on for a while, reaching the end of the island. She turned around to check on the realm she had apparently left. Back there, she saw nothing but mechanical ruins, so vast, its extent disappeared beyond the dark horizon. Immense chains, and mechanical lengths akin to those she had seen earlier, stretched out into the horizon.

Waves splashed against the island of metallic ruination, but then, she heard it again. _The nocturne..._ So, she followed the music, walking towards the waters. As she walked, bricks materialised from thin air, quickly floating into place, creating a real-time bridge for Elizabeth.

Occasionally, other passages formed, and she would stop, and listen. The music always came back, and she followed it through the various passages. She saw other islands, but they were always scrapyards, with mechanical lengths extending into the horizons.

As Elizabeth walked, the path led her to yet another island, but it too, was nothing but a junkyard of broken machinery. However, she saw a bathosphere floating nearby, cracked wide open, but still afloat. The skeletal corpses near the bathosphere reached for it, but were never able to go inside. Floating nearby was a small doll of a Big Daddy, which put a smile on Elizabeth's face.

The path then revealed two things to Elizabeth, two things that made her stop. She stood in silence, just staring at a chair, and a guitar leaning against it. She remembered when... When Booker found a guitar, and played it. So, she sang a song, and gave a boy an apple.

The screechy static and tuning came back, Elizabeth getting a headache. She wiped her nose of the blood, temples throbbing. She put her fingers together, shoulders low, face solemn.

" _That_ Booker... I miss him so much..." Elizabeth whispered. She then heard the nocturne playing again. She grabbed the guitar and lifted it, strings singing, and she followed the nocturne.

After a few minutes of following the music amidst forming bridges with twists and turns, Elizabeth reached another island. The island in its entirety was just blackness and shadows, with shadowy machinery stretching off into the night sky. Elizabeth then realized something.

"There are no lighthouses." She looked up, "There are no stars... There's just...interconnected destruction." She silently thought to herself. No lighthouses, no stars. "Then...there really is only one world left."

Her heart skipped a few beats. But then, she heard the music again, so she continued her trek, hugging Booker's guitar.

The walk was long and lonely. Skeletal corpses in the water, waves, flashes of lightning, and the xylophone music were her only companions.

"Or, maybe...maybe... Since I can't open any Tears, and can't see the doors, maybe my world was already destroyed? And now, only I exist, in the Sea of Doors..." Elizabeth looked into the waters full of corpses.

If this was Styx, she would have the rest of her life to reflect about nothingness. She turned her head, seeing blackness swirling ever so slowly after her, enshrouding everything in shadow.

Elizabeth walked on and on, endlessly, her feet and ankles burning. It was difficult to carry the guitar, but she would hold onto it, for Booker, even if she didn't exist anymore. Occasionally, she tried to open Tears, but they never worked. She would hear the xylophone less often, but still followed after the music. She hoped she never made a wrong turn this entire time, but that simply tune, was her hope.

But hope never came.

"Uhh... How much longer? I can't... I can't do this anymore..." Elizabeth said weakly, then she fell onto her knees, nearly smashing the guitar against the bricks. Once her feet stopped moving, the rush of burning intensified, and she grimaced. " _Ahhh-haa-haa-huh-huh!_ It hurts... It hurts so much..." she complained, but there was no one to comfort her.

Looking back, Elizabeth could see the darkness behind her. Most of the scenery was simply gone, just blank blackness. No seas, so lightning, no bridges, no islands, just black.

Elizabeth whimpered, then wept as the blackness swirled towards her ever so slowly, yet relentlessly. She sniffled.

"I'd rather just... Crawl in a hole, and fucking die." Her head dropped. Those words hurt her much more than she expected.

Wind blew across her, carrying a familiar red cape with it, which landed in front of Elizabeth. The cape was just missing its eyeless wearer. As much as she hated to admit it, she wouldn't even mind Michael being with her, anyone was better than no one.

Then, she heard it again. The nocturne. She sniffled, and rubbed her nose with her sleeve. Elizabeth picked herself up just as the blackness crept up on her skirt, erasing some of the shredded edge. She would go forwards, no matter how much her body ached.

Elizabeth found a strange entity at the end of the sea, the waters leading to an endless drop-off into the horizon. The entity resembled a Tear, but in a tubular form. The tubular Tear spiralled off into the horizon, and the music echoed from the tube. She smiled, and entered the Tear.

Inside the Tear was smoothing, yet lonely. She walked through a tunnel of blackness, yet was rimmed with brightness and warmth. But she still heard the music, and followed her ears.

After the final note of the song was struck, Elizabeth, at long last, saw the xylophone. The last note finished its voice, yet there was no player. There was only a twist of fate.

"Wait, what? I...I don't...I don't understand this..." Elizabeth mumbled to herself. "Think, just think... Alright, the music... It played after, after... After I died? When the other Elizabeth found me dead... And I heard it here. Then, I found Booker's guitar... Oh, and also saw the Big Daddy doll floating... Then, Michael's cape flew by..." Memories and ideas raced through Elizabeth's mind.

Thinking about Michael's cape brought back memories of what he had said to her. Michael's voice, although distorted and echoing, sounded in her head.

 _"Your father dreamt of a flood of fire, a rapture from the baptism of flames..."_

 _"He wanted to see you rapture to your potential, your fate..."_

 _"But suffering is its own baptism and its own rapture, isn't it?"_

 _"And Enigma shall be the rapture from the baptism of this last world..."_

What did all that mean? Elizabeth concentrated, and using just her thoughts, opened a Tear. A Tear, inside another Tear? She stepped in, and felt herself teleporting back into reality, but very slowly.

During the teleportation, Elizabeth kept thinking about Michael's words. Then, there was something about them that clicked in Elizabeth's head. She again heard Michael's voice echoing in her head.

 _"...rapture from the baptism of flames..."_

 _"...rapture to your potential, your fate..."_

 _"...rapture, isn't it?"_

 _"...rapture from the baptism of this last world..."_

Elizabeth reappeared in New York, but not where she had left. A short distance away, she saw blue Elizabeth comforting old Elizabeth, who was sobbing. Booker and Zachary kept an eye out, and off in the distance, lied several dead fleshy monsters. Nobody noticed her appear.

Elizabeth sternly approached everyone. Since none of them realized she appeared, she raised her guitar and strummed all the strings strongly. Zachary and Booker spun around, aiming their revolvers, and the Elizabeths lifted their heads in surprise.

"Elizabeth! You're back!" Zachary exclaimed, grabbing his heart and nearly falling over.

"Yes, she is! But, how..." old Elizabeth said, surprised yet happy, wiping her tears away with the back of her hands.

"See? Told ya she'd be back," Booker remarked.

"The chances of that are...a billion, billion to one!" blue Elizabeth commented.

Michael's voice continued booming in Pinkerton Elizabeth's head, _"...rapture...rapture...rapture...rapture..."_

Pinkerton Elizabeth stood before everyone, one foot forwards, looking terribly exhausted, but confident. She stared at Zachary, and he at her.

"We're getting Eleanor, then we're going back to Rapture."


	31. Chapter 31 - Towards Morning

While Eleanor walked down the ruinous streets, hair dotted with snow and thunder rumbling above, she had a strange feeling and turned around. Sliding out a Tear was some sort of mechanical monster, with a giant hand instead of a head. The centre of the palm had a big lens, beaming yellow, its eye? It was, undoubtedly, the same beast Elizabeth had encountered. Eleanor gave the big thing a weird look.

"What the…"

The mechanical construct reared, its lens turning red and forming a spotlight upon Eleanor. The entity roared like an engine, and suddenly lunged forth. Eleanor performed a backwards handspring, dodging the attempted grab. The hand raised, fingers spread, and slammed down. Eleanor jumped sideways, extending her legs then rolling over her shoulders, evading the mighty slam.

Back on her feet, Eleanor formed a large fiery mass while turning around, and threw it upon the entity's wrist (or neck, whichever term was most suitable). The flames seared the machinery, and the beast groaned. It then lifted itself off the ground and suddenly flailed its clenched hand sideways, Eleanor teleporting away, the fist smashing into the side of a building.

Ms. Lamb reappeared perhaps thirty feet away, near some flaming debris. She conjured her telekinesis, lifting several chunks of concrete and flaming debris, and hurling them at the serpentine machine with great force. The projectiles bounced off, but left some dents. Making a whirring noise, the mechanical construct realigned itself, fingers open, red light beaming.

"Hm. I may have to get a little creative," Eleanor remarked, trying to think of a way to defeat this beast. But, how could a mechanical entity be killed?

Eleanor cast her usual Big Sister fireballs, which violently exploded against the metal entity. The machine slithered toward Eleanor, clanking, and slammed into the ground. Unsurprisingly, Eleanor skipped away, and threw more fireballs at the damn thing.

Grabbing a handful of rubble, the machine spun around, throwing the rubble at Eleanor. She teleported a short distance, then unleashed an electrostatic discharge. Electrified, the machine vibrated wildly, each finger moving up and down at random intervals. Eleanor threw a few more fiery Plasmids at the metal beast, but nothing really seemed to happen.

"Just one eye… Like me," Eleanor whispered to herself, getting an idea.

Using her psykokinesis, she grasped a big chunk of concrete and threw it at the beast, though the machine just grabbed it and threw it back at Eleanor! She dove out of its way, rolling over the shoulders and getting back up, the machine sliding after her, glowing red eye skating side to side.

Rearing itself high into the air, the mechanical entity's red eye beamed upon Eleanor, fingers eagerly curling in and out. Eleanor lowered herself a bit, getting ready, having another idea. She walked backwards, stepping amongst scattered chunks of concrete, parked vehicles, and building rubble.

The machine extended its fingers and slammed down repeatedly while scanning for Eleanor, but she lowered and sprinted side to side with great grace and fluidity, always evading the beast's attacks. Behind her, debris fluttered and vehicles crushed by the machine's power.

"We both know I could do this all night," Eleanor remarked with a catty smile, and she continued evading its attacks, but was not teleporting away. She then slipped on the snowy ground, but still managed to dodge the next attack.

It was not long until the machine accidentally slammed its eye against a chunk of protrusive concrete, cracking the lens. Immediately, the machine stopped, rearing with a metallic groan. Eleanor quickly cast an electrical Plasmid at the beast, electrifying it on the spot. She then telekinetically hurled a big hunk of concrete. This time, it struck the beast's eye, and many cracks formed.

Irritated, and growling like a cranky engine, the machine clenched itself and started hammering with great vigour. Blinded by its own fingers, the machine's attacks were chaotic, Eleanor feeling the ground shake and her knees buckle. She teleported a short distance away, leaving the monster to attack the ground, then threw fireballs at it.

The metal monster turned, roaring like an engine, only to receive more projectiles. Setting itself down to shield its eye, the machine then stood up on its fingers, and crawled like a spider at Eleanor. She cast an electrobolt, stunning it with electricity, but since its palm was down, Eleanor had no way to damage its eye directly.

So, she telekinetically raised some rubble underneath the machine, most of which bounced off harmlessly. However, feeling the things hitting it, the machine paused. Then, suddenly, the machine lunged forth, extending its fingers and driving them like spears at Eleanor. She teleported, the metal monster slamming into the ground.

Eleanor reappeared above the machine, landing atop the back of its hand. Driving her hands into the lames, Eleanor unleashed fiery Plasmids directly into the beast's hull, the flames travelling inside it. The beast reared, throwing Eleanor off itself. She did a backflip mid-air and landed on the road.

"Damn, this thing doesn't give up easily. If only I could close that Tear or something…" Eleanor said to herself, but had no idea how to work Tears.

The machine turned, smoking a little, growling. Eleanor stunned it with electricity, then cast more fiery Plasmids at the entity, but then it suddenly dropped down to its first and middle fingers, other fingers curling inwards to cover its eye. It then walked with two fingers after Eleanor.

"While he can't see…" Eleanor remarked, then teleported atop the beast, running down the wrist and up the forearm.

Running towards the Tear, Eleanor tried to think of something. The Tear was just big enough to allow the beast to have slithered forth, but she could not possibly squeeze in. Suddenly, mechanical lengths whipped out the edge of the Tear, just like the ones Elizabeth encountered.

Eleanor summoned a ring of force, just like the ones Big Sisters used when affected by stunning or freezing. The ring of force splashed against the mechanical lengths, causing them to whip backwards. Eleanor teleported away, hearing the machine stepping after her on two fingers.

"Well, that didn't work," she remarked, then one of the mechanical lengths extended immensely, and flicked at her. She caught it, stopping it right before her face, seeing the hook on the end writhing. As several more mechanical things whipped at her, she teleported away.

Reappearing about fifty feet down the street, Eleanor was now behind the Tear. The machine U-turned, and continued walking after her, lightning flashing across the sky. Looking up, Eleanor could see man-sized spherical machines covered with mechanical lengths floating up above, somewhat reminiscent of a flying head with long metal hair or a robotic jellyfish.

"What are those, exactly?" Eleanor asked, but there was no reply, as usual. She focused back on the machine, stunning it with electricity then throwing fiery Plasmids at it. The overuse of Plasmids caused Eleanor to sweat and breathe heavily.

While being electrocuted, the machine's hand clenched, and shook vigorously. The hand opened, overextending its joints, and a Tear opened in front of the palm. Eleanor's eye widened as a train of monsters rushed out the Tear.

The monsters were huge and fleshy, skinless, without eyes, ears, noses, lips, or cheeks. They were just like the ones the Bookers and Elizabeths encountered, quickly crawling forth while growling or hissing. After ten fleshy monsters emerged, the new Tear closed.

The machine beamed its red light at Eleanor, its light making a high-pitched whirring noise. The ten fleshy monsters looked in the direction of the spotlight and charged.

"Ughh… What does it take to get rid of a sixteen-year-old girl?"

Eleanor immediately began throwing fireballs, igniting several within seconds. Despite being on fire, the fleshy monsters continued charging, making inhaling hisses and exhaling growls at every breath. A few leapt at Eleanor, extending their arms, claws protracting. She teleported to safety, harassing the monsters and the machine with her Plasmids.

The fleshy monsters started grabbing chunks of rubble and throwing them at Eleanor, but they could never hit her. She teleported again, reappearing up above, diving her feet into the back of a fleshy monster's neck, hearing it crack. Ramming the beast against the road, Eleanor unleashed a ring of anti-gravitational force just as many fleshy monsters dove at her from all directions, blasting them back.

Feeling the fleshy monster underfoot squirming, Eleanor raised a foot and gave the monster a powerful stomp into the back of the neck again, severing the spinal cord. It was now paralyzed neck down.

Eleanor hurled fireballs at the fleshy monsters and the incoming machine. She ignited more fleshy monsters, their skinless bodies sizzling, but they got up and charged again. The machine lunged its fingers forth, but Eleanor simply teleported away, and the mechanical entity struck the fleshy monsters it had summoned, knocking them down.

Eleanor reappeared atop a mound of rubble, tossing fireballs at her foes. Groaning, the machine grabbed several fleshy monsters and threw them at Eleanor, the beasts pawing as they flew. Teleporting yet again, Eleanor this time reappeared under the machine's hand, illuminated by its red light.

Eleanor stepped forth, and, with a brief shout, rammed her feast clean through the damaged lens. To her surprise, blood gushed forth, and an armful of veins popped out and dangled. The machine groaned, Eleanor stepping back as the hand clenched, then the machine began retracting back into the Tear it came from.

The nine remaining fleshy monsters stopped, many standing up and looking around. They felt the ground shake as the machine slid back into its Tear, some following it. Yet, they did not react to Eleanor, who stood still and held her breath. Even when two fleshy monsters crawled past her, they did nothing, oblivious to her. She furrowed her eyebrows as several others began crawling in random directions.

The machine went back into its Tear, most fleshy monsters going after it but still not reacting to Eleanor. However, about twenty lengths of machinery stuck out the Tear, slithering midair like floating snakes. The fleshy monsters then began extinguishing their flames, rubbing their bodies with rubble, snow and water.

 _They can't see me…hunh. Well, they don't have eyes to begin with. They must rely on other senses, or were guided by that hand's light,_ Eleanor thought to herself.

While the fleshy monsters were busy, Eleanor teleported away. She did not see that all of them had turned their heads in the direction of the purple light her Plasmid made. They seemed to sense Plasmid use. After reappearing down the road, Eleanor sprinted off. The fleshy monsters ran after her, howling, but already so far ahead, she quickly outran and lost them.

* * *

Morning approached. Although the rising sun could not be seen, sunlight still existed, and everything was dim instead of dark. It was still better than no improvement.

Nevertheless, Eleanor still had a bad feeling, and did not know why. It wasn't the strange machines hanging from the sky. It wasn't the monsters. It was something else, the same feeling she felt before the mechanical hand appeared.

Eleanor followed her instincts, and came upon a collapsed apartment building. Lightning flashed, thunder bellowed. She didn't know why, but Eleanor began digging into the ruins, using her Plasmids to remove masses of rubble. Her activity intensified, heart racing, forehead sweating. Eventually, she uncovered a small space. Eleanor knelt, then partly went into the opening.

"Oh, no! No, no, no, no, no! Please be alive, please…" Eleanor pleaded, lifting a tiny body in a fetal position from the rubble, holding it tightly against her chest. She dropped to both knees, and gently rested her down and slowly rocked the little body, already feeling her eyes getting wet.

Then, a little cough, Eleanor feeling dust puff over her face. Another little cough. Slowly exhaling, Eleanor's shoulders dropped, and she just embraced the little thing in her arms.

"E-El... _Eleanor?_ " Cindy softly whimpered, slowly opening her eyes.

Eleanor looked down at Cindy, who slowly made a weak, dusty smile. Eleanor smiled back, eyes dripping. Cindy clutched the Big Daddy doll in her left hand, holding him against her chest. The little girl raised her right hand, arm shaking. Eleanor held the child tightly. Cindy curled her arm around Eleanor's neck, hugging her, and wept.

"Eleanor...I knew you'd come back for me," Cindy squeaked. "Little Daddy did, too."

Eleanor snuffled, slowly taking a deep breath.

"D-D-Don't cry, Eleanor. I...I'm here," Cindy comforted, patting Eleanor's back. "Little Daddy's here for you, too."

"Yes… And we have each other."

"Eleanor? Where's mommy?" Cindy asked. Eleanor's heart sank.

"Come on, Cindy, let's go find Mother," Eleanor softly spoke, then carried Cindy down the street, warm tears and cold snowflakes accompanying them.

* * *

Eleanor walked on and on, head low, Cindy asleep in her arms, Little Daddy resting on her chest. A sudden gunshot caused Eleanor to duck, Cindy gasping awake, clutching her doll with both hands. Running across the street, Eleanor took cover behind a destroyed car, overhearing more gunfire as well as growling and hissing.

Peeking around the vehicle, Eleanor could see silhouettes of around twenty monsters darting up the road, crawling over parked vehicles, but they were shot down in a crossfire. Undoubtedly, gunmen had taken position within the ruins. Once most of the fleshy monsters hit the ground, snipers shot their heads, finishing them off.

"'N dat's awl a dem?" someone asked aloud, his voice echoing from somewhere.

"Sumbudy oughta check 'em out, make sure nothin's left alive," an African-American voice echoed from somewhere else.

"Hey! I need help! I have a child!" Eleanor called, getting up and going up the street. Soon, she was greeted by a dozen armed men, most of them wearing red veils, but some only wore semi-formal attire. Vox Populi rebels?

Cindy stared back, confused and scared.

"'N what we 'ave 'ere? Ye better get movin' ta uptown, fast, get that little girl to safety. The _Family_ 's takin' refugees. Just go up 9th Avenue till ya see Central Park on yer right, ye can't miss it," a man in a tweedy brown suit instructed. He wasn't wearing a red veil, or any red at all, but was armed with a Tommy gun.

A few men poked the dead fleshy monsters with their feet, then distant roaring and howling echoed from afar. The men looked spooked, but ready to fight. Thunder rumbled, and the winds increased, making everything worse.

"Get goin', girlie! Whatever's goin' on, ain't no place for kids!" a native New Yorker warned. Eleanor nodded, and moved on.

"Alright, ya'll! Ain't no lollygaggin! Everyone back into positions!" an African-American Vox rebel shouted, and he and the others did so.

Eleanor headed toward Central Park, occasionally hearing the echoes of gunfire here and there. She also saw a Vox ship that had crashed into the side of a skyscraper, and a Founder airship that crash landed into one of the smaller streets.

"Eleanor?" Cindy chirped.

"Yes?"

"What happened to your eye?" the child asked. Eleanor hesitated. She didn't want to give any more stress to Cindy, so...

"Oh, I'm afraid I've lost it." 

Later, Eleanor heard crunching and grunting sounds in the darkness. Soon, she could see silhouettes of fleshy monsters along the sidewalk. They were eating corpses, both of people and other fleshy monsters. Seemed like a Vox patrol fell victim to the monsters.

 _Huh. They are also cannibals,_ Eleanor thought to herself, feeling Cindy squirm.

"Eleanor!" Cindy whimpered, clutching Eleanor tightly.

"Shh… I know what to do," Eleanor comforted. Her psykokinesis kicked in, grasping a car door and repeatedly opening and slamming it. Instantly, several fleshy monsters looked at Eleanor's direction, but then sprang up and charged the car, growling and hissing. One of them dove into the car, clawing angrily, the others crawling around.

While the monsters were distracted by the noise, Eleanor used her telekinesis to grab a carbine, and pull it into her hand. She sneaked into the darkness, then sprinted away.

After navigating through the labyrinth of ruinous destruction, Eleanor could see Central Park up ahead. The trees and lakes were quite a contrast to the concrete jungle, and the park itself was a reasonable makeshift getaway from anyone who survived the chaos.

A small number of Vox ships had landed in Central Park, but a number of smaller ships were entwined by the hanging machinery, providing a surreal appearance. Many hanging machinery swayed or curled to and fro on their own, illuminated by flashes of lightning, clinking in the air like some sort of malevolent cacophony. Everything looked like some sort of sci fi horror film no one had ever seen.

Eleanor's thoughts came to an end when she heard occasional shaking. The ground shook every two seconds, and Eleanor looked at a crooked stop sign wiggle.

"Sounds like something _big_ is coming…" Cindy warned, and then the girls heard rapid footfall.

Turning around again, Eleanor saw several fleshy monsters sprinting at her, this time, all of them on their feet. Holding Cindy tight, Eleanor fired her carbine in one hand, shooting into one beast's head three times, but it continued running. So, she another's shin three times, and it hit the ground rolling over. She emptied the remaining bullets into the other beasts, hearing the bullets wetly thud into their bodies, but other than grunting, they seemed untroubled.

Eleanor dropped her carbine and cast an electrobolt, stunning a few monsters, and the inability to suddenly use their limbs caused them to hit the pavement. The remaining fleshy monsters were met by fiery Plasmids, but they continued charging, hissing and howling from pain.

"Hold on tight, Cindy!" Eleanor yelled, hugging the child in her arms tightly, then sprinted off, pursued by the loud, noisy monsters. Eleanor could have teleported, but was unsure if Cindy would teleport with her, and did not want to take the risk.

Eleanor ran past the last pair of skyscrapers, darting into Central Park, the fleshy monsters hot on her heels, save their flames died out.

"Ugh! I can hear them breathe!" Eleanor exclaimed, not wanting to look back, but having a feeling that the fleshy monsters could run faster than she.

"And I can even smell their bad breath! Yuck!" Cindy whined.

To Eleanor's surprise, a flock of crows suddenly flew against her, feeling their talons and wings scratch her skin. The fleshy monsters began growling louder, and then gunfire and shouting echoed from the treetops.

"Feast on their flesh," someone stated.

The fleshy monsters, numbering six, began pawing at the air, the supernatural crows feasting on their skinless bodies. Nevertheless, the fleshy monsters writhed forth, crawling after Eleanor while bullets thudded against their bodies. She spun around, seeing a Vox Zealot walk out the darkness and start swinging his sword at the monsters, looking calm and fluid.

Eleanor threw a fireball at a fleshy monster, but it reared in flames, bringing its claws and jaws towards her. She push kicked it in the jaw then leaned backwards to avoid its claws. Her kicked staggered the monster, and then Eleanor had no choice but to scram right before the other monsters encircled her.

The gunners in the trees kept shooting until they had to reload, a few fleshy monsters jumping on various trees and climbing up, their weight shaking or breaking branches. The Vox in the trees resorted to clubbing the beasts in the face and hands to prevent the monsters from reaching them.

"My penance is revelation. Your penance will be food for the crows. All you abominations shall die! Your prophet of hell will not succeed this time!" the Zealot assured, chopping up the fleshy monsters with great vigour, but his sword and murderous crows only made flesh wounds.

A few monsters swiped their huge claws at him, but he ducked or skipped, and continued swordplay. He sometimes spun around so that his coffin took the force of impact, using it as a shield. Occasionally teleporting with his crows prevented him from being grabbed, and he even dismembered one fleshy monster and beheaded another.

The Zealot's blade and birds did some damage, and he cleft one beast's skull down to its jaw, splitting its head asunder. Despite having a split head, the fleshy monster dove into the Zealot, taking him down to the ground but pinning him against the coffin on his back. The Zealot sat up, driving his sword into the fleshy monster, then kicking at it, but being tied to a coffin prevented him from getting up.

The fleshy monster buried its clawed hands into the Zealot's shoulder and thigh, the man groaning aloud. The monster then sunk its teeth into the Zealot's side, then jerked its head sideways, ripping the Zealot's belly open. The Zealot's intestines slipped out, blood leaking out his hooded mouth as the monster chewed on a mouthful of guts. His crows swarmed the fleshy monster, biting small chunks of flesh until its spine and ribs were visible, but the beast continued chewing on mouthfuls of guts.

Another fleshy monster jumped around then began gnawing on the Zealot's head, teeth cracking his skull. The fleshy monsters did not actually kill their prey, they just dug in and ate them alive, exactly what was happening to the Zealot! Upon finally dying, the Zealot's murderous crows dissipated.

Additional men ran to the scene, armed with various guns, and opened fire at the fleshy monsters. The mix of Vox rebels, armed citizenry, and even a few police officers gunned down the fleshy monsters. The beasts in the trees were soon shot down from them, and gunned dead.

One of the fleshy monsters suddenly stood up and charged Eleanor, and she ran around a tree just as a Tommy gun unloaded. After twenty rounds, the beast flopped over, hitting its skull against the pavement, and expired. Eleanor sighed with relief, walking out from behind the tree.

"Those big fuckers are getting smarter," one of the armed citizens remarked.

"Dey got Samuel, ripped 'is guts out," a Vox sniper remarked.

"Eh, anyone be feelin' dat?" one of the citizens asked, and something clicked in Eleanor's head.

"Feelin' what?" a Vox rebel asked.

"Deh ground. It's shakin'. Can't be anytihn' good," the citizen remarked, then saw Eleanor walk to him. Eleanor's eyes brightened up, her eyebrows raised, and she slowly grinned. Cindy turned her head, looking at the citizen, befuddled.

"Oh my God, it's… Cathal...is that you?" Eleanor asked, feeling her heart jumping with joy. There was no mistaking Amber-eyes' amber eyes and his sexy face. He looked really good holding a smoking Tommy gun, all the better it was he who shot dead the monster that went after Eleanor moments ago.

"Hm? Oh, ey Eleanor. Fancy meetin' ye all de way out 'ere! Good t'ing I gunned down dat fookher b'fore he got ya," Cathal remarked, quite surprised, but pleased to see an old friend.

"Ha! Yeah, you saved me. Thank you, thank you for that. Good thing you were here," Eleanor remarked, noticing Cathal tilt his head, eyebrows furrowed. _There better not be another sexual innuendo…_

"Whut happened to yer oi?" Cathal asked, Eleanor needing a second to figure out what he was asking.

"Oh, my eye, yeah… Got shot in the face, lost an eye. Bad luck," Eleanor replied, Cindy looking up at her.

"I never knew ye had a kid. Ye a single ma?" Cathal asked, giving Cindy a little smile, Cindy smiling back. "Single ma's sure travel real far just to get some dick."

 _Ugh… I knew it…_

"Nnno, Cathal," Eleanor said slowly, eyes narrowing, "I'm not a single mother. This is Cindy, who is… I view her as my little sister. My father saved her, so when I found her buried alive, I had to help."

"Oh, ya, yer a saint fer sure. But ya still want some dick, I can see it in yer eyes. Yer just dyin' fer it so much, how else d'ye 'ave such big oiz?" Cathal teased.

Eleanor tried to hold in a chuckle, but it escaped her lips, and she blushed a little. If it could ever happen, she'd love the chance for Cathal to just absolutely fuck her brains out until she couldn't move. Her crotch tingled at that thought, and her body warmed up.

Cindy looked up at Eleanor with a cranky face. It was as if Eleanor completely forgot about the girl.

"Eleanor, I can walk now," Cindy said.

"Hm? Oh, right, yes, here you go," Eleanor put Cindy down. The shaking Eleanor had felt was no longer present.

"Anyways, I tihnk I better take ye ta de refugee camps. Actually, nah, I know a better place just fer girls. Least I could do, n' I'd like ta check on Aideen. C'mon," Cathal said, slinging his gun over the shoulder. The girls followed him.

As they walked, Cindy held Eleanor's hand, Little Daddy in the kid's other hand. Eleanor looked around. The makeshift camps were full of destitute people. Mothers and children huddled and wept, injured people groaned, and even a number of hippies doing psychedelic drugs were present from whatever love-in they were part of. The most seriously injured people were cramped in the various buildings and structures throughout the park.

About half the people kept staring up into the surreal sky, like lost, frightened sheep, not knowing what was going on, though some hippies seemed to think they beheld a god in the storm.

What Eleanor found odd was the scent of roses. She could not pinpoint where the smell came from, but it was nice, reminded her of her brutal childhood.

"Eleanor! Look!" Cindy squealed, letting go of Eleanor pointing at a carousel. "Look! I bet you'd love to ride one of the horsies!"

"Heh heh! I was just imagining ye on one a 'em," Cathal remarked, Eleanor chuckling.

Along the walk, Eleanor saw some buildings, sculptures, bridges, and monuments, even the occasional Vox airship here and there. It was quite a beautiful place, even with the darkness and hanging machinery in the sky.

Eleanor saw a large group of Vox insurgents equipping citizenry with various guns, and showing them how to use them. Nearby, a dainty, cute African-American woman was speaking to several Vox Beasts. She held a carbine.

"...Conor, Greg, Oisin, ya'll take the regiment ta reinforce McCarthy and Jones up north. They gotta get that Handyman fixed before the horde comes. They be sayin' that somethin' huge is also headed towards us. I'll get the ships airborne soon. We'll bombard the horde before it reaches the park," the dainty black woman instructed.

"Ya really gonna do that, Daisy? Even with Songbird and those danglin' machinery?" an African-American Vox Beast asked.

"Well, hell ya! We ain't got any other choice! Either we risk everythin', or lose everythin', includin' our lives."

"I told ya not ta trust dat creepy Michael guy. He sure got us out from whatever world we entered, and we shot the Founders out of the sky, but this world sure ain't ours, either. We destroyed Columbia to save the city, and fer what? Now, machines are hangin' from de sky and shredded most of us! Michael hasn't even shown his face," an Irish Beast complained.

"You're right, but there's nothin' we can do now. I don't know what's goin' on, but when we find Michael again, we get our answers, or we'll take his head," Daisy promised with some irritation. She noticed Eleanor, Cathal and Cindy walking past, Eleanor making eye contact with Daisy for a moment, but neither said anything to one another.

"Alright, let's move out! Them meaty monsters ain't havin' me for dinner tonight!" Daisy exclaimed, gripping her carbine, then she and the Beasts parted ways.

Eventually, Cathal took the girls to the Swedish Cottage Marionette Theater. Inside were wounded children, and some young women, nursing students, tending the little ones. The sights reminded Eleanor of Little Sisters back in Rapture.

Cindy waddled to a group of bandaged girls, playing

"How's t'ings?" Cathal asked, approaching a young woman with brown hair, green eyes, and noticeable curves. She was kneeling and tending some children lying in makeshift beds. She stood up, smiled at Cathal, and then he leaned forwards and kissed her, giving her butt a little squeeze.

Eleanor made a little smile. The woman he kissed was Aideen, the quiet girl Eleanor met at the pub back in Sligo. If she was kissing Cathal, she no longer could be Patrick's girlfriend. Although Eleanor's face did not show it, she was rather hurt by what she just saw, but at the same time, also relieved.

"Cathal, what about Barry, Cindy, and Patrick?" Eleanor asked once Cathal and Aideen finished their little romance.

"Patrick...didn't make it. Ne'er seen Barry 'r Cindy since...whatever da hell's goin' on." Cathal replied. Aideen looked sad.

"It's goin' ta get worse, before it gets better," Aideen remarked with a nervous chuckle.

"But, dis place 'ere is just fer girls, ya'll be safe," Cathal said.

"Good, thank you, Cathal." Eleanor turned to Cindy, "You'll be safe here, Cindy."

"Nuh-uh!" Cindy objected, "I don't wanna be anywhere but with you!" Cindy held up Little Daddy before Eleanor, "Little Daddy wants the same! See?"

Eleanor was about to talk sense into the child, but a massive wail echoed throughout the night sky. She immediately darted out the cottage to see what was going on. Panic spread throughout most of the park, various people yelling in fear and running off in random directions or holding their families.

Up in the sky, Eleanor could see the silhouette of a huge flying thing, aggressively writhing through the hanging machinery, eyes glowing red.

"What de foohk is dat?" Cathal asked aloud as he ran out the cottage. Aideen also stepped out, as did many startled children, Cindy waddling past them.

"Songbird…" Eleanor whispered. "If I follow him, I'll find Zachary and the others."

"Eleanor!" Cindy screamed, Eleanor spinning around, beholding a grumpy child. "You're not leaving without me."

"Very well." Eleanor held Cindy's hand, and they walked away.

"Eh! Eleanor! Where ya goin'?" Cathal called, rather confused. Eleanor stopped, looking back at Cathal, Aideen, and the injured children.

"We can't stay," Eleanor replied, dropping her shoulders. "And, Cathal… I guess it's time I finally show you what I really am."

Eleanor raised her free arm and threw a large fireball up in the air, where it exploded harmlessly. Keeping her palm up, she cast an electrobolt to the skies. She then conjured a mix set of Plasmids, flames, electricity, and purple psychokinesis floating above her hand.

Cathal, Aideen and the children stepped back from the Plasmids, but Cindy did not really care.

"I am not really human," Eleanor admitted, then extinguished her Plasmids.

Cathal remained confused, Aideen covering her mouth and totally dumbstruck. Amber-eyes just looked back at Eleanor, and nodded.

"A'right. Ye do yer t'ing, Eleanor. Godspeed."

Eleanor nodded, then walked away with Cindy. It was not long until Songbird's wailing returned, echoing down the streets of the ruined city.

"I'll have to carry you to ran after Songbird," Eleanor said, so Cindy lifted her arms. Eleanor picked her up.

"Hold on, Little Daddy, we're going for a ride!" Cindy warned her doll, making herself comfortable in Eleanor's arms. Cindy's big sister then sprinted after Songbird.


	32. Chapter 32 - Morning

Eleanor ran after Songbird, Cindy in her arms. The mechanical lengths hanging from the dim sky were becoming more active, bundles of them visibly curling side to side, swaying, or spinning. The most immense mechanical lengths continued spiralling into the tops of skyscrapers, slithering into windows and then reappearing several floors down through lower windows.

The strange mechanical jellyfish that floated around occasionally emitted yellow spotlights out their fronts, beaming them around. Eleanor had a hunch it was best not to get sighted by them, so she took cover behind various vehicles, piles of rubble, and behind buildings.

As Eleanor waited for a few mechanical jellyfish to pass, she felt the ground shake every few seconds, the rumbling echoing down every street in the area. Once able, Eleanor darted off, the mechanical jellyfish not reacting to her. She almost lost sight of Songbird, but he seemed to be flying in the direction of the rumbling.

Songbird suddenly screamed aggressively, swooping between the skyscrapers and turning down a street.

"There goes Big Angel!" Cindy squeaked, Eleanor running after The Bird as he disappeared around the skyscrapers.

As Eleanor ran on and on, she overheard distant gunfights. A polyphonic choir of roars and howls echoed throughout the city, Cindy shivering from fright and grasping Eleanor tightly.

"No matter what happens, I'll protect you," Eleanor promised. It would have been smarter and easier to have left Cindy back at the park, but the sisters' bond could not be fully broken.

Songbird flew powerfully, wings sometimes scraping along the sides of the skyscrapers, but nothing would stop him. His eyes turned red as he turned down the next street, and up ahead was Columbia University. The campus had held a large student demonstation previously, but it obviously was not going on anymore.

Eleanor sprinted down the next street, and she saw Songbird flying towards Columbia University. Within the large buildings of higher learning was the Low Memorial Library. Mounted atop the Low Memorial Library was something straight out of a nightmare, causing Eleanor to stop. She even felt her feet skid, and Cindy's hands clawed at her.

Well, whatever gargantuan nightmare had manifested itself into reality, was perhaps fifty feet wide and tall, resembling a giant, skinless gorilla head with a face similar to that of a viperfish. It had a pair of huge lens-like yellow eyes, with criss-crossing metal bars over them, apparently having been inserted into the sides of its eye sockets.

The immense head sat atop the rotunda, immense skinless arms grasping the sides of the buildings, humongous claws having scraped against the concrete. Eleanor could not see the whole breadth of the monster, but it seemed to have a neck (or tail?) two hundred feet long, somewhat comparable to the body of a snake, yet having shoulders and arms before the head. The serpentine body coiled around the library, and the rest trailed off into the distance.

Quite unusually, a series of gigantic chains from the sky connected to the monster's knuckles, and many more hooked along the beast's spinal cord. This gave it the appearance of a nightmarish, monstrous, fleshy marionette the size of a building.

Eleanor and Cindy were both dumbstruck. Ms. Lamb did not frighten easily, but even she was quite spooked at what she had just seen. Then, the monster's eyes beamed yellow, and it raised its head, casting two spotlights upon Eleanor.

Immediately, Eleanor felt static and distortion torture her brains. Her eyes glowed yellow, as did her veins, and she fell to one knee. She barely had the strength to carry Cindy, and was quickly forced to put her down. Eleanor's head and shoulders lowered, feeling her strength melt away.

"Eleanor! What's wrong, Eleanor? What's wrong!" Cindy cried, hugging Little Daddy against her chest, but Eleanor did not react.

Eleanor lifted her gaze, as painful at it was, and stared back at the beaming lights. Blood trickled out her nose and mouth.

"Ms. Lamb…" a low, slow, guttural voice seemingly reverberated from the lights.

Cindy grabbed Eleanor's arm, trying to pull her out of the spotlight, but no matter how much Cindy groaned and tried, Eleanor was just too heavy. Suddenly, the spotlights lifted, and Eleanor went back to normal. Shaking her head, Eleanor stood up, wiping her face from the blood.

"Eleanor! You're back!" Cindy cheered, and then a shrieking wail echoed.

Looking up, Eleanor saw Songbird dive into the monster, The Bird ramming his claws into the beast's skull and digging into its flesh. Both monsters' eyes beamed red. The gargantuan monster groaned, and began flailing itself side to side, its chains shaking violently, but Songbird did not let go, even when his legs slid out the monster.

Songbird made a mess of the monster's face, clawing massive rips down its skull. He then ripped open its right eye, then partly crawling into the eye socket, destroying the eyeball.

The monster reared with a howl, arms rather slowly lifting and grasping its face. It was not long until the monster began to fall backwards off the Low Monument Library, landing with a mighty crash, the rattling of chains echoing.

While Songbird made a mess of the monster, Eleanor saw a group of people run out the library.

"Hey! This way!" Eleanor yelled at the people, so they ran towards her, and she and Cindy walked to them.

"Eleanor? That you?" a man asked, Eleanor raising an eyebrow. Soon, the group of people reached her, consisting of two men, and three dainty women. The five people were panting, especially one of the women, who was quite old.

"There you are. We thought you died," Zachary remarked, Booker and the Elizabeths turning around to look back.

"I'm glad you're all alive, too," Eleanor remarked, everyone overhearing the echoes of Songbird's wailing and fighting behind the library. Cindy stepped closer to Eleanor, putting her shoulder against Eleanor's leg.

"That damn thing was crawling after us for hours!" Booker exclaimed, catching his breath.

"And I thought those fleshy guys were bad…" Pinkerton Elizabeth remarked.

"Just...what the hell is going on?" blue Elizabeth asked, quite spooked, putting her hands over her elbows and raising her shoulders.

Up above, where the sun was rising, the machinery began to unfurl. The movement was quite loud, rattling and clanking reverberating down from the sky. Sunlight beamed through the opening, but it would still need a couple hours to fully open.

"It seems you better hurry," someone said, causing everyone to turn their heads to the right. Standing with his arms and legs slightly spread apart, elbows bent, was a familiar, eyeless face.

"Oh, him, yet again," Zachary remarked.

"He's a bad man!" Cindy growled.

"You...you're still alive?" Pinkerton Elizabeth asked angrily, "I saw Songbird rip you in half…"

Booker, Zachary and Eleanor got ready, ready to kill Michael again, but they didn't pounce just yet. Old Elizabeth raised her shoulders and forearms, and took a few steps back. Pinkerton Elizabeth and blue Elizabeth looked at each other, and nodded. Eyes narrowed, these two Elizabeths remembered what Annabelle told them.

"Post obitum, lux aeternum," Michael remarked, empty eye sockets bleeding away as always. He clasped his hands behind his back, then tilted his shoulders.

"So, you entered and escaped his domain, Elizabeth," Michael said, cocking his head, but not reacting as the two Elizabeths gently approached him.

"But, just as there are multiple Elizabeths, and multiple Bookers, so too are there-" Michael paused, then looked back and forth at the two Elizabeths. He then spread his arms out to the side, and let himself fall backwards. He landed in a shadowy Tear, and it and he promptly disappeared, leaving the Elizabeths dumbstruck.

"Aw! Should have just shot him," Booker remarked, watching as Pinkerton Elizabeth groaned and crossed her arms from frustration.

"Or grasped him with psychokinesis," Eleanor commented, then noticed old Elizabeth walking a short distance to the side, looking up.

"He's coming," old Elizabeth warned, nervously staring into the sky of machinery, at the section that was opening up in front of the sun.

"Who?" Eleanor asked.

"Spirry," old Elizabeth answered, then she looked at Eleanor, eyes big and filled with fright. "It's all over, for the last time."

"Spirry, hunh. I met him once or twice," Eleanor said.

"So did I. But we need to get to Rapture," Pinkerton Elizabeth stated.

"Go back to Rapture? No point. Mother bombed it down into the abyss. There is no Rapture left," Eleanor said. Pinkerton Elizabeth furrowed her eyebrows, and hesitated.

"We still need to go."

"Why?" Eleanor asked.

"I… I don't know. But sometimes...you just need a leap of faith."

"And how are we gonna go all the way back to Rapture?" Zachary asked, quite skeptical.

"We'll find a way," Pinkerton Elizabeth assured, then everyone heard Songbird screech.

Everyone turned to face the library, seeing Songbird rising, grasped by dozens of chains. The chains lifted Songbird, and no matter how much he writhed and kicked, he could not free himself.

"Songbird!" blue Elizabeth cried, clasping her hands in front of herself, then froze as the giant skull-monster climbed atop the library, missing its right eye.

"There's nothing we can do! Let's go!" Booker yelled, grabbing young Elizabeth and yanking her to get moving.

Eleanor picked up Cindy, and everyone ran away from the giant monster. It was simply too gigantic to fight.

The monster's immense body began to uncoil from the building, and it crawled after everyone, serpentine body slithering, the chains connected to its hands and spine rattling.

Whenever the monster lifted its hands, the chains in its knuckles pulled up, retracting into the sky, suggesting the monster also relied on mechanical assistance for its locomotion. Regardless, the monster moved rather slowly, immense arms dragging its grotesque head and slithering body, but each stroke moved the monster several dozen feet.

As she ran, Eleanor felt the monster's eye beam red light over her back. Her skin crawled and felt fizzy, but did not feel much else. She, and everyone else, could hear the damn beast breathing behind them! It kept opening and closing its mouth repeatedly, curved towering teeth clicking together loud enough to echo.

Up ahead, several of the flying mechanical jellyfish-things beamed red lights, and swerved towards everyone, mechanical arms extending forwards. Zachary and Booker shot the drones down without too much trouble, and the chase continued.

The monster's hands soon began crushing various ruined vehicles here and there, and occasionally it grabbed the sides of buildings to pull itself faster.

Sometimes, Zachary turned around to throw Old Man Winter or cast it as a trap for the incoming monster, but the freezing effects did little. He even cast Possession at the huge monster, but, unsurprisingly, the green ghost failed to do anything. To make things worse, gunfire and howling echoed in multiple directions.

"Eleanor! Up there!" Cindy cried, Eleanor looking up. Unfortunately, a few dozen fleshy monsters were climbing down the mechanical lengths, sometimes jumping or swinging on them, but some fleshy monsters climbed down the sides of buildings.

"Those things are above us!" Eleanor warned.

"Dammit! Not these guys again!" Booker complained, so he cast Murder of Crows. The flock of surreal crows would keep the beasts busy for a while, buying everyone a little more time.

"Ugh! I can smell the damn thing's breath!" Pinkerton Elizabeth complained.

"Eleanor!" Cindy cried, gripping Eleanor tighter.

"Keep moving! Just don't look back!" Eleanor yelled, so everyone else looked back as they ran, and sure enough, the giant monster was perhaps fifty feet behind them, rattling chains and clicking teeth reverberating throughout the streets.

"We need to find a small alley to get away!" old Elizabeth yelled, the pain in her knees and ankles almost becoming unbearable.

"They're all blocked with debris!" Booker shouted.

"Keep looking!" Zachary yelled back, then threw an Old Man Winter trap for the monster, its hand triggering the trap which partly froze its hand.

More howls and roars echoed, and small groups of fleshy monsters began jumping down from up above, landing here and there. While running, Booker, Zachary and Pinkerton Elizabeth opened fire, Eleanor hurling fiery Plasmids, the attacks harming the beasts but they nevertheless ran after the fresh meat.

Several monsters jumped down ahead of everyone, and they promptly received Plasmids and bullets. Zachary cast Possession on one of the fleshy monsters, and it quickly spun around and leapt upon another fleshy monster, the two rolling around clawing and biting.

"Booker!" blue Elizabeth exclaimed.

"Do it!" Booker shouted, and his Elizabeth conjured an Abraham Lincoln Motorized Patriot.

"Death comes for thee, unnatural abominations!" the Patriot exclaimed, cranking his weapon and unleashing a stream of bullets upon the beasts. Most were gunned down, the monsters writhing on the road, but three charged anyways, ablaze from Eleanor's Plasmids.

Zachary cast Old Man Winter, freezing one charging fleshy monster solid, smoke briefly rising off its formerly-flaming body. Eleanor used her telekinesis to stifle the next two, allowing Pinkerton Elizabeth and Booker to shoot them down.

As he ran past the dying fleshy monsters, Booker swung the stock of his carbine across one beast's jaw as it picked itself up, knocking it down.

The Motorized Patriot stayed back, gunning down a dozen fleshy monsters and then firing at the giant monster. His crank gun ran out of ammo, and he began reloading.

"Though you shall fall not now, our cause is righteous, and this world shall never be yours!" the Patriot assured, then turned around and ran away from the giant monster just as it slammed both hands where the Patriot once stood.

A few fleshy monsters charged at the Patriot, but he beat them down with his crank gun and stomped upon them. While running, he finished reloading, and continued firing at the fleshy monsters in his way, occasionally tackling them down.

The giant monster swung its hand down at the Motorized Patriot, but he suddenly swerved in his running, dodging the attack. The Patriot turned around, running backwards while firing at the giant and the fleshy monsters sliding off the mechanical lengths above.

While the Patriot kept the horde of monsters busy, stifling them at least a little, everyone else had the time to create more distance from the danger. However, it was not long until the Patriot was overcome. The fleshy monsters could run faster than Eleanor, and one by one, the occasional fleshy monster survived the stream of bullets and tackled into the Patriot. He fought back until his crank gun ran out of bullets, then clubbed his gun until it broke apart, covered with blood. He then began punching, headbutting and kicking at the horde of fleshy monstrosities, but was taken down, and ripped apart.

Howling and roaring, the horde of fleshy monsters ran up the street, triggering various Vigor traps left behind by Zachary and Booker. The eruptions of fire, freezing, electricity, crows, levitation, and Possession all contributed to disruption, especially the Possessions, but the horde numbered a few hundred at least, and just kept going. The giant monster did not bother watching where it placed its hands, and often set them down upon several fleshy monsters, crushing them.

"I-I-I can't go running much longer!" old Elizabeth cried, and then Zachary suddenly picked her up bridal style, and ran with her. She was quite surprised by that, and despite the obvious age, Zachary was still quite strong.

"We really gotta get out of here! Now!" Booker yelled, hearing the squirmy noises of the horde getting louder and louder.

"I'm trying to get a Tear open! But I can't find one!" blue Elizabeth cried back.

"Then try harder! I sure as hell ain't ending up their supper!" Booker shouted, shooting down a mechanical jellyfish up ahead, then reloading his carbine while running.

"If we can't outrun them, we'll have to split up, or I'll hand Cindy to someone and divert their attention!" Eleanor suggested.

"Fair enough!"

Down the road, something big and red appeared, flying into the side of a skyscraper. It was a Vox zeppelin. Lightning flashed across the dim morning sky, revealing several other zeppelins rather haphazardly flying in-between the skyscrapers, sometimes bumping into the buildings or each other.

The giant monster lifted its chin, briefly hesitating. It let out a strange squawk-like sound.

The red-draped zeppelins aligned themselves wherever they could, and opened fire at the horde of monsters. Onboard personnel of Beasts and infantry also opened fire, and soon, many rockets screeched down the streets, overhead Eleanor and her friends, exploding amidst the fleshy monstrosities.

"Dayyum! Look at tha size oh dat one!" the Vox announcer exclaimed over the PA.

The giant monster was pummeled by many rockets. It lost a few teeth, and a few rockets flew into its empty eye socket and exploded within its skull, but it kept crawling, blood gushing out of its wounds. The rockets blasted many fleshy monsters up into the air, but the horde kept moving.

"Never thought I'd be happy to see rebels!" Zachary exclaimed as rockets screamed overhead, old Elizabeth clutching him, quite frightened of everything.

Everyone kept running, and to their surprise, one of the Security Zeppelins descended, landing ahead of them. A dozen or so Vox infantry, and a few Beasts, ran out, opening fire at the horde.

Once Eleanor and the others reached the zeppelin, one of the infantry raised her carbine and beckoned everyone.

"C'mon, get in! We gotta go!" Daisy shouted, beckoning everyone to get aboard. She aimed her carbine fired at the incoming horde, the giant skull-monster crawling through the barrage of rockets and gunfire.

A portion of fleshy monsters appeared from other directions, but were nonetheless shot apart. A few managed to reach the Vox, but the Beasts tackled into the beasts and began headbutting their helms into heads. Not even fleshy monsters could claw or bite through metal, so the Beasts kept them busy.

Eleanor, Cindy, the youngest Elizabeths, and Booker boarded the zeppelin. Zachary put the old Elizabeth down and they entered the zeppelin. Eleanor used her telekinesis to grasp the fleshy monsters fighting the Beasts and render them immobile, allowing the Beasts to bust their skulls open, then the infantry to shoot them dead.

"A'right! Let's get outta here!" Daisy shouted, then the Vox infantry and Beasts went back into the zeppelin, Daisy the last to enter.

Up the zeppelin went, the horde of fleshy monsters charging like feral dogs possessed by demons. Many monsters leapt into the air, but they could not reach the zeppelin.

"Good timing!" Booker exclaimed, Zachary and the Elizabeths sighing with relief. Eleanor put Cindy down, and they looked out the window to see the fireworks outside.

"Yeah… When I saw you runnin' down there, with all them things after ya, I just had to go down n' pick ya'll up," Daisy said, then looked through the window, seeing the huge monster crawling down the street. "An' God Almighty, what the hell is that? Nevah seen anythin' alive that big!"

"Looks like we gonna need quite a lot er rockets ta take 'im out," an Irish-American Vox Beast remarked.

"Yeah, no kiddin'," Booker said.

As the zeppelin flew up and away, the giant monster stared at it. Smoking from so much rocketry, the monster's chains retracted, lifting its hands higher and higher. It then clawed at a large skyscraper, and literally began climbing up it.

"He sure doesn't give up easily," blue Elizabeth remarked.

"Well, he ain't never faced us before," Daisy assured.

Eleanor kept looking out the window, and saw a big church off in the distance. It was the Cathedral Church of St. John the divine, and south of it was West 111th Street People's Garden. The next block eastward was the south end of Morningside Park.

Curiously enough, the section of the mechanical sky opening up allowed sunlight to beam upon the cathedral. It was quite pretty to look at, though Eleanor had a feeling it was still an ominous omen.


	33. Chapter 33 - The Game

Up the Vox zeppelins went, and up the giant monster climbed, red eye beaming upon its targeted airship. In return, most zeppelins fired at the giant monster, rockets bursting on it and the building, but it wasn't giving up anytime soon.

Inside the zeppelin were stacks of munitions and guns, allowing Booker, Zachary, and Pinkerton Elizabeth to resupply ammo. Old Elizabeth and young Elizabeth each took a belt with two holsters, and each took two Broadsider pistols for self-defence. Booker re-equipped two Hand Cannons at his sides and reloaded his Burstgun, and Zachary took a sniper rifle which he slung over the shoulder.

"Booker, catch!" blue Elizabeth said, tossing Booker a vial of Salts.

"Thanks."

Zachary sighed, "Dammit... I hope Sofia is still alive..."

Daisy stood at the front of the bridge, one hand on the window, looking down as exploding rockets flashed below.

"Your plan worked. So far, they still be stayin' away from the refugees. The horde's still runnin' blind all over the place," one of the Vox Beasts remarked.

"Yeah... Let's hope it stays that way. We'll keep outmanoeuvrin' 'em, lead 'em into ambushes, and slowly pick 'em off," Daisy replied, her skills and experience as a rebel still quite handy against monsters. "But damn, that huge thing really can take a beatin'!"

Scorched here and there, the giant monster continued climbing the skyscraper, and the zeppelins kept their distance, bombarding the beast and the horde. Once the monster reached the top of the skyscraper, the chains connected to its spinal cord rattled with greater vigour. It then raised its arms, grasping the chains connected to its back, then began climbing up.

"The hell's it doin'?" a sniper asked.

"Must be trying to get away," Zachary remarked.

Once able, the giant monster grasped more the mechanical lengths hanging from the sky, pulling itself up higher and higher, until the zeppelins had difficulty firing at it. The zeppelins would have to raise altitude to continue bombarding the giant monster, though none of them wanted to risk getting too close to those mechanical things.

After much heaving, the giant monster was perhaps fifty feet above most skyscrapers, holding onto the various mechanical lengths. It then positioned itself upside-down, hanging from the mechanical lengths, and began swaying. Relying on some swinging, the giant monster made its way upside-down across the sky.

"Dammit! It wants to attack us from above! He knows we ain't flyin' too close to them hangin' machinery!" Daisy exclaimed. She ran over to the PA, actually pushing the African-American announcer over. "Daisy here! All zeppelins, fly outta here, and stay low! Don't let that thing jump on ya!"

"Oh, great..." Booker groaned, Cindy clutching her Big Daddy doll nervously.

A few Beasts swung their heavy weaponry against the windows, shattering them. They aimed up and fired at the monster, other Vox rebels joining with their firearms.

"Is any of that going to do anything?" blue Elizabeth almost protested.

"Well, gotta do something!" Booker exclaimed.

"I'll do what I can atop the zeppelin!" Eleanor exclaimed, and promptly teleported, reappearing above the zeppelin. Feeling wind blowing her hair back, she began hurling fireballs at the monster. Though, no matter what anyone did, the horrid thing kept going.

The zeppelins spread out and flew down various streets, now bombarding the horde below. The monster swung with one hand, its great weight pulling down a dozen tonnes of mechanical lengths with it. It swooped down and swiped its free arm, striking a zeppelin and smashing the gondola apart, hurling bits of wood everywhere. Some occupants fell out, and the zeppelin began to tilt.

Leaning over the zeppelin, the monster lunged with a mighty groan, and snapped its gargantuan jaws over the envelope, breaking it open. The zeppelin plummeted, and the monster began climbing up again, a few other zeppelins launching more rockets at it while it was low enough to be shot at. Unfortunately, rockets, Eleanor's Plasmids, and Vox firearms did little, but the beast began bleeding profusely here and there, waterfalls of blood gushing down.

By the time the monster climbed back up and positioned itself upside down from the mechanical lengths, most zeppelins had flown a few hundred feet away in all directions. Nevertheless, the monster crawled after a specific zeppelin...

After a few minutes of flying down various streets, everyone overheard clunking and rattling echoing from the skies. Daisy looked out the side window, seeing a big red beam shining down from above. Eleanor's fiery Plasmids started flashing across the sky.

"Dammit! He's comin' after us!" Daisy warned, and instantly, the Vox pooled against the windows, and broke them open to fire at the incoming monster.

The giant monster increased its speed, its weight pulling down the mechanical lengths or sometimes ripping them off. Eye beaming red light that kept moving up and down as it crawled, the monster approached the zeppelin, its own chains chiming against the mechanical lengths.

Eleanor teleported back into the zeppelin.

"Eleanor! You're back!" Cindy almost cheered.

"Yes, but I'll need to go again," Eleanor replied, Cindy's mood dropping.

"I don't think we can take him out!" Booker said to Daisy, emptying a Burstgun he had equipped sometime ago. "Do it!" Booker yelled at blue Elizabeth.

"There!" Elizabeth shouted as she summoned a Gun Automaton atop the zeppelin's wing, and it turned around and began shooting at the monster. Although it would do little, desperate times caused desperate measures.

The giant monster continued crawling, but then growled, clearly irritated. It grasped a handful of mechanical lengths, ripping them out of the sky (or wherever the hell they came from). It then swung its handful of torn machinery, as if a series of metallic whips, striking the zeppelin and deforming the envelope, causing the airship to tilt for a few seconds, everyone inside staggering or falling to the floor, Eleanor grabbing Cindy.

"I'll go back out, and try to divert its attention!" Eleanor shouted. She then made eye contact with Cindy. "I'll be back," she said, and teleported away.

Eleanor reappeared above a skyscraper just outside, and knew she had to focus her Plasmids into a stronger medium. Putting her hands close together, she conjured a powerful stream of electricity, essentially a constant Electrobolt. Her Plasmid's electrical breakdown cause some trouble for the giant monster, the electricity travelling throughout adjacent mechanical lengths as well.

Shaking from electrocution, the giant monster's movement decreased. Suddenly, it swung its arm to the side, whipping its mechanical lengths at Eleanor. Her eye widened, then she teleported away just as the machinery slammed into and bounced off the building. She reappeared at a nearby skyscraper, and continued electrifying the monster.

Then, the monster paused, and turned its head, looking at Eleanor. As soon as its red spotlight shone upon her, Eleanor felt sharp, echoing static and tuning noises reverberate in her skull. Blood leaked out her nose and mouth, and she fell to her knees like an unstrung marionette. At that, the monster started turning around, and crawled towards Eleanor.

Meanwhile, the Vox noticed the monster's change of direction, and many of them exclaimed some relief.

"There he goes!" a Vox rebel remarked.

"Hunh? Where?" Zachary asked, rather rudely stepping through a couple Vox and leaning out the shattered glass. He looked around, and saw Eleanor on her knees atop a skyscraper not far off. "Dammit! That thing's after her! We gotta do something or he'll kill her!"

"What's wrong with her?" Pinkerton Elizabeth asked.

"She's hurt by him!" Cindy squeaked.

"Don't know, but, let me..." Booker said, trying to figure out what to do.

Booker turned his head, seeing blue Elizabeth step by, face focused. She kept looking at the mechanical lengths, a few of which reached the skyscrapers. Getting an idea, she slipped on her Sky-Hook, which she kept quiet hidden underneath her clothes. Sky-Hook equipped, Elizabeth aimed, and then suddenly jumped out the zeppelin, and with such force she actually flew several dozen feet out into the air.

"Elizabeth!" Booker, Zachary, and old Elizabeth shouted at the same time. A couple seconds later, they saw blue Elizabeth hanging on the end of one of the mechanical lengths, Sky-Hooker apparently working on it!

"Hunh, never thought of that..." Booker remarked. He equipped his Sky-Hook, and he was next to suddenly fly out the zeppelin, Sky-Hooking one of the mechanical lengths.

"Wish I still had my Air-Grabber..." Pinkerton Elizabeth mumbled.

Booker and Elizabeth used their Sky-Hooks to jump from hanging machine to machine, then they both landed nearby Eleanor, the giant monster closing in on them.

"Hey! Eleanor! Snap out of it!" Booker yelled, dropping his Burstgun, then gently grabbing Eleanor's head and giving it a few light smacks. Eleanor remained mostly limp, eye and eye socket beaming bright yellow.

Elizabeth summoned a Motorized Patriot atop an adjacent Skyscraper. This one looked just like the Abraham Lincoln Patriot she summoned last time.

"Columbia has fallen, but _I_ return to face thee again!" the Patriot exclaimed, running to the ledge of the skyscraper while cranking his gun, unloading a stream of bullets upon his big foe.

The monster grunted, then whipped its handful of machinery at the Patriot, impact striking pieces off and knocking the Patriot over. He picked himself up, damaged, but still able to shoot.

"Eleanor! _Eleanor!_ Dammit, she's not snapping out of it!" Booker yelled. He fired his Burstgun at the monster, then heard Elizabeth gasp.

"Watch out!" she cried, the monster pulling its arm back and ready to swipe its machinery at them. Elizabeth summoned a Rocket Automaton beside everyone. It fired a single rocket right before the monster whipped its machinery at them, the automaton serving as cover.

The monster's whipping attack destroyed the automaton and bounced past it, Booker's shields shattering and preventing certain death. The impact sent Booker, Elizabeth and Eleanor off their feet, but they were mostly unharmed. Eleanor remained partly unconscious.

The monster pulled its arm back, going for another attack, ignoring the Patriot's gunfire. Elizabeth grinned eagerly and excitedly.

"There! I feel it! Ha ha!" she almost cheered. Booker gave her a weird look, then rolled onto his back as the monster reared its arm.

" _Ohhh-shhhit!_ " Booker shouted.

The monster swung its arm, whipping its mechanical lengths. Out of nowhere, a giant Tear formed in the path of the monster's arm. A portion of the mechanical lengths entered the Tear, causing the rest of the length to violently coil around the Tear from the whiplash. This confused the monster quite a bit, and when the Tear closed, it cut through the machinery, and most of it fell.

Booker knelt up and emptied his Burstgun at the monster, even though it did nothing. He then dropped it, slipped his Sky-Hook on his right hand, and got up. Grabbing Eleanor, he threw her over his left shoulder, the Patriot still firing away at the monster. Snapping out of its confusion, the monster began crawling upside-down from above, and extended an arm to Eleanor and Booker.

"Let's go!" Booker said, and he leapt up, Sky-Hook connecting to a mechanical length, avoiding the monster's immense hand, which slammed into the building, staggering Elizabeth.

Elizabeth regained her footing, and leapt as well, jumping over the monster's arm and connecting to a swaying mechanical length. Pushing her legs to give the machinery a good swing, she screamed and leapt to another one just as the monster's hand swung behind her, wind causing her to twirl.

"Elizabeth!" Booker yelled, turning his head.

"I'm fine! Keep going!" Elizabeth yelled back, regaining stability on her swing. " _Aghh!_ I can smell that thing's hot breath flowing up my skirt! _Ughh!_ " She tried not to retch and shiver.

The monster pulled itself after its tiny prey as they swung and leapt from column to column, opening and closing its jaws to click its teeth together. It clearly would not be giving up easily.

Booker struggled carrying Eleanor, feeling the tendons and muscles in his right arm stretch and burn, but he was a stubborn, tenacious man.

Up ahead, a dozen or so of those mechanical jellyfish-like things flew by. Elizabeth leapt, reaching out for the next mechanical length, but it decided to suddenly sway away from her.

" _Oh-whoa_ _wooah!_ " Elizabeth exclaimed, pawing at the air furiously. Down she fell, blood rushing up her face, and guts jumping into her throat.

Booker did not see Elizabeth fall, but she ended up landing on one of the mechanical jellyfish things, legs astraddle. It made a vibrating whirring noise, its mechanical arms flicking upward and hooking onto Elizabeth's sides.

" _Oww!_ " she cried, writhing and ripping the things off her. She then leapt off the damn thing, Sky-Hook connecting to another mechanical length.

Meanwhile, the Motorized Patriot continued firing at the giant monster, but then one of the mechanical lengths suddenly slammed down upon him, breaking his right arm off. Another whipped down, taking his head off. Then, several more whipped at him, coiling around them. The machinery lifted him up, and pulled him apart, piece by piece, bolts and springs raining. He phased out of this reality.

The giant monster continued its pursuit, but by now, it became tired. It was obviously panting. Covered with holes from rocketry and gunfire, the constant bleeding inevitably led to blood loss. Weakness and tiredness affected its movement.

As Booker and Elizabeth leapt here and there, they heard rattling and clanking echoing overhead. Much to their terror, they realized that some mechanical lengths and chains began swinging at them. Like the arms of a squid or mollusc, clutches of machinery extended, reared, then lashed out at them. Most missed, as the two kept swinging and jumping, but it was quite unnerving to behold, especially with the giant monster crawling after them amidst the sky of machinery.

After Booker leapt, he cast Bucking Bronco through his Sky-Hook while midair, the anti-gravitational force stifling one clutch of incoming machinery and its chains. While hanging with one hand, Elizabeth withdrew one of her pistols and rather inaccurately fired at the mass of moving machinery, but the bullets just ricocheted off them. Since gunfire did nothing, she holstered her pistol, and the two continued leaping from column to column.

"Damn! This girl sure can sleep!" Booker exclaimed, feeling Eleanor's limbs and blood drops flopping around as he jumped, but she wasn't recovering.

"Keep going! The airship is right ahead!" Elizabeth called, then jumped to the next column, evading a chain that swung at her.

"Oh-whoa!" Booker exclaimed, his Sky-Hook slipping out the next column, and he slid off it. Elizabeth gasped.

"Booker!" Elizabeth screamed, reaching down for him, but unable to do anything. Her skin became like brittle ice, and she held her breath.

Booker fell. His blood and stomach slipped up into his mouth, but he kept holding onto the girl, a habit he could not let go. Without thinking, Booker did the only thing he could think of. He cast...Murder of Crows? The flock of powerful, murderous crows viciously flew around.

As if understanding Booker's predicament, the crows swooped under him, beating their wings as quickly as they could, flying upward against him. A black cloud of crows formed, slowing his fall.

Elizabeth saw the numerous crows, and needed two seconds to regain her senses. Then, everything became red, so she looked up. The monster's eye beamed upon her.

"Wait! I'm not her!" Elizabeth squeaked as the monster extended an arm toward her, though she was not affected by it. She looked around frantically, but couldn't find any mechanical columns or chains. " _Euuhnnn-neee!_ " Elizabeth wheezed, writhing away from the giant hand, anything to get a little farther away from it.

Suddenly, Elizabeth aimed up and leapt off the mechanical length, reaching for the higher ones, escaping the monster's clutches. Up Elizabeth went, her ascension soon slowing down. She clawed at the air with her Sky-Hook, though couldn't reach the next columns or chains. Once she reached the top of her airborne arc, she fell, and landed hard on her ass...on the underside of the monster's chin. She paused for a second.

"Oh!" Elizabeth exclaimed, raising her arms and shoulders from the unpleasant revelation. She felt the monster repeatedly open and close its jaw, causing her to roll back toward the neck and then bounce about. " _Wuh-wuh-whoa-wuh-wah!_ "

Elizabeth kept trying to stabilize herself and so jump to one of the mechanical things, but the moving jaw kept making her fall down. Amidst her turmoil, Elizabeth thought she heard something screaming.

The monster stopped crawling, growling, and swiped an arm across its front. Elizabeth heard a heavy whooshing sound, followed by a loud wet crunch, causing the monster to rear and hiss.

Elizabeth lifted her chin, finally not bouncing around, hearing wet ripping noises. The monster began shaking its head and growling vigorously, causing Elizabeth to roll to and fro again. Then, the monster field its head to the side, causing Elizabeth to roll backwards over the shoulder, and off the head.

" _Yeek!_ " Elizabeth squeaked, and an eyeblink later, she landed on her back against something hard and metallic. She blinked, and saw her big friend tilt his head to the side, looking back at her. He had caught her with his palm while clutching the monster's face. His eyes turned green as he leaned over Elizabeth.

"Songbird, you're back..." Elizabeth whispered, glad that he managed to free himself.

After a second, Songbird curled his claws around Elizabeth, then jumped off the monster, diving down with Elizabeth cupped in his hands. The skull-monster swiped its arm at Songbird, but the buzzard suddenly swerved, dragging its clawed feet along the monster's forearm and ripping it open.

Spreading his wings, Songbird swooped down and then lifted, creating distance from the giant monster. His eyes turned yellow.

"There! Down there!" Elizabeth cried, pointing down to where she last saw Booker and Eleanor fall. So, Songbird swooped down yet again, landing hard against the road. He gently placed the squirming Elizabeth down.

"Booker? Booker!" Elizabeth called, raising her hands to her mouth. There was no reply. She bit her lip, then saw a few dead fleshy monsters lying across the road, one of them smoking. " _Booker!_ "

Elizabeth ran around looking for Booker, and then overheard gunfire and howling off in the distance. Songbird cocked his head, and walked along with Elizabeth.

The gunfire and roaring intensified, followed by screaming and howling. Elizabeth clenched her teeth, but felt safe with Songbird, who lowered a wing to shield her. She felt safer, but was still nervous.

"Never stop! Always crush!" a bellowing voice echoed, followed by slamming and more howling.

Elizabeth gasped as she saw several fleshy monster fly around the corner of a building, smashing into a building. Then, a Vox Handyman jumped into view, slamming his mechanical hands against the fleshy monster repeatedly. The fleshy monsters hissed and groaned as they were beaten, the Handyman's hands bloodied.

More howling. A few dozen fleshy monsters ran to the scene, ten of them leaping upon the Handyman and clawing and biting him, even though it was foolish.

"Can't hurt me! But I do to you, what you do to me!" the Handyman yelled, and he started jumping around and swinging his mighty arms. He fought perhaps forty fleshy monsters on his own, knocking them around and sometimes shocking them.

A portion of fleshy monsters crawled or sprinted past the Handyman, running towards Elizabeth. She raised her arms at Songbird, so he picked her up, then kicked and stomped at the fleshy monsters charging him. He also spun around while swinging his wings, striking the fleshy beasts with them.

"Songbird!" the Handyman exclaimed once he saw him, both mechanical brutes knocking down more fleshy monsters that came. "You gotta kill the big monster! I can't reach!"

The Handyman pummeled the monsters, but much to Elizabeth's surprise, few by few, more fleshy monsters leapt upon him. Soon, the Handyman was overwhelmed by sheer numbers, more and more fleshy monsters dog piling him until he came down. He unleashed an electrostatic discharge, then sat up, shoving and headbutting fleshy monsters down, but ten more leapt upon him.

Songbird ran forth, ramming his feet into the dog pile, talons slicing open many fleshy monsters. Kicking and pecking, Songbird struck down many fleshy monsters until the Handyman could free himself.

"Thanks!" the Handyman said, then jumped up and slammed his huge hands upon some fleshy monsters. "I gotta check on others! See if still alive!" At that, the Handyman went down the street, but it seemed the Vox infantry had been brutalized to death.

"We need to find Booker!" Elizabeth said, so Songbird walked on, leaving behind many dead and dying monsters, the remaining dispersing.

A while later, Elizabeth wiggled, signalling Songbird to put her down which he did.

"Booker! Booker!" Elizabeth yelled, then heard someone call her name. She ended up running down an alley, Songbird walking after her then leaning into the alley.

Songbird watched as Elizabeth reappeared with Booker, Eleanor over his shoulder, the gangly girl still unconscious, mouth open, eyes beaming yellow. In Booker's right hand was a hand cannon, barrel smoking a little.

"They really should make a Vigor that lets you fly..." Booker remarked, then shook Eleanor a bit. "Hey, you, waking up?"

"She's still out? What happened to her?" Elizabeth asked, Booker shrugged. They both heard the giant monster up above roar, Songbird making a mechanical coo.

"That thing sure doesn't want to leave us alone," Booker commented.

"Songbird can take us back to the others," Elizabeth said.

"The Vox will open fire at him."

"Then he'll just have to put us in the gondola quickly. If we go now, we'll only scare a few zeppelins at most," Elizabeth said, then turned and waved her arms at Songbird to get his attention. "Take us with you!"

Songbird hooted, then gently grabbed Elizabeth, Booker and Eleanor, and flew off with them. Elizabeth pointed and shouted to command Songbird, and they soon met up with Daisy's Security Zeppelin.

"Put us in there, then fight the giant monster!" Elizabeth instructed. Songbird nodded, flying towards the zeppelin, the personnel already running around once they spotted the big buzzard.

After a few rockets fired, Songbird barrel-rolled during flight, dodging the rockets, then clutched the underside of the gondola with his talons. Lifting and curling his torso over the side of the gondola, Songbird tossed Elizabeth, Booker and Eleanor inside, then let go of the airship and flew away, eyes turning red, and wailing.

"Eleanor!" Cindy cried, running to Booker as he put the teenager down. The child knelt beside Eleanor. "Are you alright? I'm here, Eleanor, I'm here."

"What the _hell_?" Daisy cussed, Booker and blue Elizabeth looking at her. She was gripping her carbine in both hands, watching as Songbird flew away.

"Songbird won't fight if I'm in the way. We need him," blue Elizabeth said.

"That big bird wiped out half of us. Why's he on our side now?" a Vox Beast asked.

"If you shoot him, he'll fight back. So, don't shoot him," old Elizabeth answered, then looked out the window at the opposite side. She put her hands on her upper arms, obviously nervous to see the section of opening machinery becoming larger, more sunlight beaming through. "We don't have much time left. Once _he_ returns, everything is lost."

"You mean Spirry? Well, he ain't seen the likes of me," Booker said.

"You _can't_ beat him, Booker!" old Elizabeth almost shouted, spinning around with clenched hands. She exhaled slowly, calming down. "Every time I saw him arrive, he destroys Songbird, then kills you. We can't fight him."

"Then what do we do?" Booker asked. Old Elizabeth sighed, head dropping.

"I...I don't know."

"We go to Rapture," Pinkerton Elizabeth said, stepping into the conversation and crossing her arms.

"Rapture?" Daisy asked.

"It's a...far-off lighthouse, out in the Atlantic ocean. We have to go there, it's our only hope," Pinkerton Elizabeth answered, Zachary looking at her, but did not mention that Rapture was an underwater city.

"And what exactly is this leap of faith going to do?" young Elizabeth asked.

"Lead us to Michael," Pinkerton Elizabeth replied, then everyone overheard Songbird screaming and the giant monster howling.

Outside, Songbird flew around with great speed and power. The giant monster swiped one arm after the other, trying to swat the birdie down, but Songbird always dodged his attacks. Sometimes, the monster lunged its head, snapping its jaws, but Songbird evaded its bites as well. Torrents of blood appeared along its arms.

Every time the monster missed, Songbird would swoop in and drag his claws along the monster, gradually ripping the already injured monster open more and more. Songbird harassed the giant, but avoided a direct attack, keeping an eye out for the machinery. Although a mechanical soul, Songbird could learn, and whenever he heard rattling or clanking, he dove to avoid the skyborne machinery.

"Getting to Rapture won't be easy, and these airships are pretty slow," Zachary commented.

"Then we find an airplane. _LaGuardia Airport_ is to the east of here, across the river," Pinkerton Elizabeth said.

"You can fly planes?" Zachary asked.

"Well, no, but... A leap of faith is all we need."

"A dead monster is what we need!" Daisy said, looking up, as the monster was now crawling upside-down along the machinery again, Songbird clawing him open at every opportunity.

Many Vox lined up along the windows, breaking some more, and opened fire at the giant monster. Cindy covered her ears and sat on her ankles.

"Don't shoot Songbird!" blue Elizabeth cried.

Songbird flew around, screaming, now resorting to tackling into the monster claws-first, poking deep holes into him then spreading them open. The monster groaned, Songbird jumping off him and diving to avoid its grasp.

Realigning himself, Songbird U-turned and flew upward, swerving past the monster's mighty arm. Just as it seemed Songbird would tackle into the monster, he suddenly turned, flying across the monster's neck while dragging his right hand and right talons across the monster's throat. Ripping open its jugular, a stream of blood gushing out.

The monster made a gurgly roar, and in its rage, managed to grab Songbird. The buzzard writhed, clawing and pecking at the hand that grasped him, ripping the first finger and thumb down to the bone, but the monster started chewing on Songbird's head.

To prevent himself being gnawed apart, Songbird grabbed one of the monster's teeth with both hands, and uprooted it from its gums. Blood gushed out, and the monster groaned. Turning the tooth around, Songbird rammed the pointy end into the bed of flesh it had emerged from, stabbing it deep into the gums. The monster howled from pain, and Songbird managed to wriggle out its grasp and fly off.

"So, we fly to this airport, that's the only plan?" Daisy asked, rather skeptical.

"There is no other plan," Pinkerton Elizabeth said firmly.

"Very well. We sure as hell don't know what to do anyways," Daisy said. "We're flyin' east, then."

"Good. Songbird will keep that monster busy," Pinkerton Elizabeth said.

Daisy spoke into the PA system, instructing the Vox flotilla to fly east across the river and rendezvous at an airport, and staying low to avoid the sky-machines. Once the message was received, other Vox announcers spread her instruction.

"Wake up, Eleanor, wake up," Cindy said, resorting to using Little Daddy again, but Eleanor remained out cold. Cindy sniffled.

One by one, the Vox zeppelins emerged from the concrete jungle, flying across East River while Songbird harassed the giant monster relentlessly. He tore open the monster's arms and neck, veins and tendons hanging out.

The monster swung an arm, and Songbird tilted past, grasping a handful of tendons hanging out the monster's wrist then diving. Songbird's weight and whiplash yanked on the tendons, pulling them out until they hung a dozen feet, but did not snap.

Machinery from above whipped down, so Songbird let go of the tendons and dove. He would not become entrapped by those things again!

Daisy's airship soon flew over LaGuardia Airport, and sure enough, a series of airplanes were parked along the concrete. Queens and Brooklyn were not as devastated as Manhattan, at least.

"There's the airport. We need to land there, now," Pinkerton Elizabeth said.

"Aww, sheet! Here comes deh big boy again!" an African-American Vox Beast warned, looking out the back of the airship. The Vox forces pooled to the back of the zeppelin, opening fire at the monster as it crawled upside-down over the river.

"Jesus! How much more can that bastard take?" Booker cursed.

Songbird pressed his attacks, resorting to flying up into the monster's neck, and literally diving headfirst into the hole in its throat. Digging his way into the neck, Songbird made a complete mess of the monster's neck, ripping open anything he could, enlarging the hole, blood gushing all over him.

Groaning, the monster grabbed Songbird by the legs, pulled the buzzard out his neck, then threw him down into the river. Songbird splashed heavily, and bad memories of the highly pressurized water up in Columbia came rushing in. But, that did not apply down here. He swam with his limbs and wings, trying to jump out the water and take flight, but failed. He swam towards the airport, the monster's blood loudly falling _en masse_ into the river.

Meanwhile, the Vox flotilla spread apart, keeping their distance from the monster. Daisy's airship landed next to the runway, and the Vox began to resupply then leave the vessel.

"Here, I'll carry her now, your arm must be hell," Zachary said, Booker looking at him. Booker wiped his mouth with his sleeve, but for a change, he let Zachary grab the girl.

"What deh hell are d'ose?" an Irish Beast asked, and soon the Vox murmured about what the hell the airplanes were.

"Airplanes," Zachary answered, then gently lied Eleanor on her back. He knelt, trying to figure out what was wrong with her, but was clueless.

Everyone looked up upon hearing the monster roar, Songbird having tackled into its other eye and split it apart.

Driving both hands into either side of the socket, Songbird wrenched the fucking eyeball out, the optical nerve stretching. Clenching his hands, Songbird's claws tore into the whiteness, and it splat open. The Buzzard then let go and flew away, not even bothering to rip the eyeball off, leaving it be to maximise pain. The monster howled, eyeball dangling down its face.

The Vox forces who left Daisy's ship commenced shooting at the monster. One by one, other Vox zeppelins landed, their forces ran out and joined in the shooting. Curiously enough, a number of mobsters ran out the airport, and also fired at the giant monster.

Meanwhile, Songbird swam to the shoreline, rinsed of blood, eyes green. He stood up, shaking himself. Looking up, he jumped, and took flight again, eyes turning yellow. Amidst bullets whizzing and ricocheting, Songbird flew after the giant monster, performing his clawing attacks and evasive manoeuvres.

"I have an idea! Songbird, _come_!" blue Elizabeth yelled, and Songbird flew towards her, Vox forces panicking and running apart.

"Elizabeth? What are you doing?" Booker asked.

"Don't worry, I have a good idea!" blue Elizabeth replied, and then Songbird landed before her with a crash, Cindy running behind Booker and covering her head.

"Let's go!" blue Elizabeth said. Songbird picked her up and flew off with her.

"She better not get herself killed..." Booker grumbled.

"She won't," old Elizabeth assured.

"What is she planning to do?" Zachary asked.

"Just watch. You'll see," Pinkerton Elizabeth said, crossing her arms.

Songbird flew toward the monster, Elizabeth feeling quite safe airborne with him.

"Get me closer! I want to be right up to his ugly face!" she instructed, feeling herself get quite cold. Her heart skipped a beat every couple of seconds, and her stomachs churned. She was afraid, but knew what she had to do.

Songbird wailed as the monster blindly swung its good arm to and fro, but it was easily dodged, Elizabeth feeling like she fell out of Songbird's grasp amidst his sudden twists and turns.

"Right up in his face, _now_!" Elizabeth yelled, furrowing her eyebrows, but grimacing when she saw its dangling eyeball.

Rather confused, Songbird nonetheless obeyed, flying into the monster's face. He burrowed his talons into the monster's nostrils.

"Steady, steady! Give me a sec!" Elizabeth yelled, putting her hands together. She then spread her arms apart, as if ripping paper, and then a giant Tear opened up.

" _Get back!_ " she screamed, and Songbird let himself fall off the monster, then spiralled downwards to avoid attempted grabs.

Back on the airport, Booker, Zachary, the two Elizabeths, and the Vox beheld a the giant Tear Elizabeth formed. Sure enough, the monster stuck its head down to attack Songbird, and so its head entered the Tear.

The Tear closed, disappearing, along with the monster's head. Instant death caused the monster's body to stiffen, and it remained latched onto the skyborne machines as a waterfall of blood flowed out its neck. Curiously enough, yellow light also shone out the severed spinal cord, the sounds of static and tuning emanating from it as well.

After a second, the yellow light, static, and tuning, faded away. Eleanor's glowing eyes, and her own tuning and static noises, also faded away. She remained unconscious, but moved a little. Cindy smiled eagerly.

Up above, the monster's body became limp, and fell, Songbird flying away.

The decapitated monster fell until the chains connected to its body extended to their fullest extent, then whiplashed against its spine and knuckles. The tug caused the monster to bounce, but half the chains ripped out its body. It remained hanging above the river, blood gushing out into the waters below.

Songbird flew back to the airport, landing near Booker and the others, then knelt. Blue Elizabeth hopped out his hands, landing like a cat. She stood up, smugly pushing a hand through her hair.

"I bet he didn't see _that_ coming," blue Elizabeth stated.

"Well done," Booker mumbled.

"Hey! Don't be scared, Songbird won't hurt you when I'm here!" blue Elizabeth called to the Vox. Since the buzzard's eyes were green, the Vox warily approached everyone again.

"He better not," Daisy said, and sure enough, Songbird's eyes remained green.

Eleanor suddenly sat up, holding her head.

"Woo...what happened?" Eleanor asked, rubbing her big forehead.

"Eleanor's back! Yay!" Cindy cheered, getting everyone's attention.

"You lost consciousness or something. I had to carry you, even when jumping along the skyborne machinery with my Sky-Hook," Booker replied nonchalantly.

"Hunh? Oh, well...thanks," Eleanor said, Booker nodded.

"I think the monster's life was related to your unconsciousness," old Elizabeth suggested, Eleanor looking at her.

"He just looked at me, and I... Yeah, I think he made me unconscious somehow. Not sure why."

"It was quite a ride, but as you can see, we managed to finally kill that disgusting thing," blue Elizabeth said, gesturing at the suspended monster who clearly was missing his head. Eleanor's eye widened.

"H-How...how did you do it?" Eleanor asked, amazed.

"Let's just say, you don't want to be halfway in a closing Tear," Pinkerton Elizabeth warned, Zachary getting bad memories.

Songbird cooed hopelessly.

"Oh, you did good, too, Songbird," blue Elizabeth said, Songbird lowered his head to hers, and she gave him a rubdown. " _Good_ boy!"

"Oh, thank God!" Zachary suddenly exclaimed, then ran a short distance towards the airport.

Eleanor and the Elizabeths turned their heads, seeing Zachary embrace someone. Picking herself up, Eleanor walked over to see what was going on. Zachary affectionately kissed a blonde woman, holding her tightly, breathing heavily.

After a few seconds, Zachary let go of the woman, who fixed the position of her eyeglasses. She looked at Eleanor. Eleanor wasn't happy, and just crossed her arms.

"I see you're still good at escaping doom," Eleanor remarked.

"As are you. Like mother, like daughter. You get it from _me_ ," Sofia Lamb said rather slowly. "But, Eleanor... _The Family Reborn_ has someone you must see."

Eleanor's slightly tilted her head.

"Who?"

"You will see. Mother knows best. You all can come with me, if you wish," Mother said, then turned around and walked back towards the airport, Zachary and everyone else following, though Daisy's Vox didn't care.

"I'll be back soon, Songbird. You stay," blue Elizabeth said to her friend.

* * *

The Vox forces entered the airport, which housed a number of Irish Mobsters and some citizenry. It was not long until the Irish Vox noticed the accents of the Irish Mob, and they got along quite well. In no time, the Irish began drinking and laughing.

Eleanor followed Mother and Zachary deeper into the airport, occasionally passing small groups of injured mobsters or citizens. Zachary kept asking Mother questions, but she ignored him. Soon, Sofia and her company reached the offices, guarded by various mobsters.

"There. _The Family Reborn_ found him trying to escape after dispatching his followers. Mother knows who is important. But... It is up to you what happens to him," Sofia said, then opened a door leading to an office. Everyone entered, but Cindy scuttled away unnoticed.

Eleanor found a man on his knees, hands bound in front of him. Eleanor remembered his checkered suit. _Ring-a-Ding-Ding_.

He looked up at her, rather surprised.

"What in the goddamn... Guess you had brains to spare with that huge head of yours," he said, Eleanor frowned. "Hey, hey...let's keep this in the groove, okay? Smooth moves, like smooth little babies with your face," Benny said.

"Why you son of a bitch... Can't believe you're still alive, Benny," Zachary spat. He was about to grab his revolver, but Sofia held his hand, looking at him. He calmed down.

Eleanor said nothing. She just leaned over, grabbing Benny's jacket and ripping it open.

"You makin' a pass at me, sister? I'm still way out of your league, ya naughty broad."

Eleanor just smacked Benny across the face, leaving it red with her hand imprinted on it.

"Aw... You're one mean pussycat."

"I would've just shot you in th' head," Daisy said.

"That's, _mine_..." Eleanor said, pulling out her medallion from Benny's inner pocket. She held it to her face, quite relieved to see it again. The lighthouse on the medallion even looked happy to see her.

"So, baby, what did you find down there?" Benny asked, Eleanor assuming he made a little innuendo.

"Hundreds of monsters, and machines," Eleanor answered, putting her medallion in her pocket.

"I see. Now what?"

"Well, it's up to me what happens to you."

"Careful, baby, or that grin might crack your pretty face open. But hey, you're not here for revenge, you're here to get clued in. This is good news, baby. Now I can sleep at night knowing you didn't die. Any questions you got, I'll answer. I wish I could offer a VIP lifestyle, but..."

"How about you stop rambling before I break your neck?" Zachary butted in, Benny looking at him, then at Eleanor.

"First, I gotta ask... How are you still living?"

"I am not human," Eleanor answered, Mother slightly lifting her chin and feeling good. "It'll take more than a few bullets in the head to stop a Big Sister. If only you lived in Rapture, you would know."

"Yeah, no kiddin'... How did you track me down?"

"The Pinkerton's were onto you this entire time, Benny," Pinkerton Elizabeth said.

"The Pink's were on to me from the get go? I thought I was being so clever... But looks like the Irish Mob beat you to me, baby," Benny said to Elizabeth.

"They did." Elizabeth admitted with raised eyebrows. She then took out a cigarette and lit it. She lifted the pack to Sofia, gesturing if Sofia wanted a smoke. Sofia took one, then Elizabeth moved her pack to Zachary, Booker, and then Daisy, they also taking one. The other Elizabeths did not want any cigs. She passed the other smokers her lighter.

"Remember, Mr. Chairman, _The Family Reborn_ watches all. We are persistent, that is all," Sofia said while exhaling smoke.

" _Yee_ ah, that's one word for it," Benny commented, then looked back at Eleanor. "I guess that's enough messing around at first base. Tell me, baby, which way's the wind gonna blow? 'Cause you got the drop on me here. If killing's what you're here for, this'll be the time, that's for sure."

"Killing you... Would feel really good," Eleanor admitted. She leaned over, her right hand conjuring a fireball, which Eleanor nearly shoved in Benny's face. He winced, then reared from the heat.

"But baby, all the trouble you went through...there must be something you'd want to ask about. But if bullets can't get through your head, what hope is there?"

"It's all about this medallion, isn't it?" Eleanor said, closing her hand and extinguishing her Plasmid.

"It's the house edge, baby, literally. It's what Spirry needs to stack the odds in his favour."

At that, everyone paid Benny much more attention.

"How do you know of him?" Eleanor asked.

"I'm the definition of cool, baby, I know how to swing. Let's just say...that I've been around, and leave it at that."

"A slave to his genes, like so many..." Sofia remarked quietly to herself.

"Spirry, he's a cool cat to swim with. Or was, I should say. Ever since I met him face-to-face, he gave me the heebee jeebees."

"Agreed," Pinkerton Elizabeth remarked, "Huge, and white..."

"White? No, baby, he's huge and red," Benny said, Elizabeth looking at him skeptically. "Oh, right, I see... It's a tricky world we live in, baby. Or tricky world _s_ , I should say. Spirry can swing as good as me, and we'll leave it at that."

Pinkerton Elizabeth paused with a focused face. Did this mean that...

"If he swings as good as you, and you're here like this, we can take him out," Booker commented.

"The medallion...what is it, really?" Eleanor asked.

"Well baby, see, after the Luteces escaped from the Pink's, they let Spirry catch them, made him believe there was no escaping him. He's wrong, as is that senile old broad," Benny said, old Elizabeth looking a bit surprised, yet relieved.

 _So it's not hopeless?_ old Elizabeth thought to herself.

"The Luteces saw him coming ten years ago, I'd say that's why they left Rapture before Eleanor became a big girl, to get working on something. Your medallion is like a miniature Lutece device of sorts, but there's more to it than that. The same atom the Luteces found, that allowed them to find each other, is inside that medallion."

" _Medallions_ , Benny. Medallion _s_ ," Eleanor said, then she reached into his other inner pocket, and plucked out the other medallion, the one with the serpent. "Mother taught me psychology. I can see through your little game. Keeping things from me won't work, Benny."

"Whoa! Ease down on the gas, baby, the medallions belong to those who can use them!" Benny rather mockingly exclaimed, but he did seem irritated that he was unable to hide the second medallion from Eleanor.

"Go on," Eleanor said, the smoking of her friends amassing, causing young Elizabeth to cough a little.

"Why does everyone have to smoke?" blue Elizabeth quietly whined.

"The atom I mentioned, is somehow present in both medallions at the same time. The medallions are each like a Siphon in reverse, connecting the wearer's consciousness to Tears, or even allow the wearer to be in two different places, or worlds, at the same time. Talk about swingin', ya dig? Consider it wish-fulfillment in a platinum chip," Benny explained as best he could.

"Quantum superposition," Pinkerton Elizabeth butted in, then took a mouthful of burning nicotine. "Sounds like the medallions were a replication of our Tear powers," she continued while exhaling smoke.

"And when Michael escaped through the shadow Tear, and these medallions were in the city... That must be why my powers partly came back," blue Elizabeth said.

"Aw, jeez... Why can't everything just be simple?" Booker mumbled.

"Huh. Why didn't the Luteces tell me about this?" Eleanor asked softly to herself, just staring into the serpent medallion.

"It's a complicated game, baby. If you knew what it could do, well, who knows where you would end up. Probably end up in Spirry's clutches, or dead," Benny remarked. Eleanor scowled at him.

"If murder is part of your game, you do not deserve to live," she threatened.

"Baby, you just don't understand the bigger picture of the game here! What I did to you was rotten to the core, no doubt about it. But if you think the _Pinkerton's_ , Michael Vay Atar, the Luteces, Black Sun, _The Family Reborn_ , or Spirry wouldn't kill to get the game into their pockets... I really did blow out your brains. It's a game, baby, and this game is the only way we can change everything that's happened. Games have winners and losers, with luck being for losers. That's why I prefer the former. How about you?"

"So Michael did play me all along... Another reason to pop his head when I see 'im," Daisy said to herself.

"Hm. You're just like Spirry and my mother... Everything is a game for you. _Everything_. Well then, Mr. Benny, I am the foremost expert at breaking rules and ending these games."

"Hey baby, _baby_ , the odds sure don't look good, and that's because I wasn't done riggin' them. That's when you toss the dice. You can't end a game when it's rigged for ya. I learned a lot dealing with Spirry, he's always a cool cat to swim with, but it just takes time for everything to...come together."

Eleanor kept quiet for a few seconds.

"How do you know so much?" young Elizabeth asked, quite interested.

"Working with Spirry for years, baby, that's how. It's a leap of faith into wish-fulfilment. It all just comes together."

"What do you know about the Cipher? One of the machines in the other world mentioned something about that. Said it was something about my... destiny, and potential. I think it had something to do with what he referred to as the Enigma," blue Elizabeth inquired.

"The Cipher? Don't know. Spirry said nothing about any cipher to me, baby," Benny answered. "As for the Enigma, it is what you see hanging from the sky, and everything else that comes from it. The machines consist of the Enigma, and Spirry's body consists of the flesh. It's a duality, the synthesis of the bodily and of machinery. Spirry is one sick, vindictive fuck. Cool cat to swim with, though."

"Anything else?" Eleanor asked as she put her serpent medallion in her other pocket.

She turned her head to her shoulder to give everyone a look. Booker shrugged, Zachary shook his head, Mother and Daisy and Pinkerton Elizabeth smoked away, and the two other Elizabeths did nothing.

"Yeah, let me go. Your father would do the same, wouldn't he?" Benny asked.

Eleanor suddenly leaned into Benny, so that their foreheads knocked. She clenched her fists.

"I lost an eye, and almost died because of your game."

"Oh, c'mon, baby. It's just time to prove that you're daddy's girl. You have a heart of gold, just like him. You'll be merciful, always, and let me go. You're still a smart kid, even with some brains blown out."

Eleanor gritted her teeth, then pushed her head against Benny's, actually overpowering him and causing him to rear.

"How about I rip both your eyes out, and make every bone pop out your skin?" Eleanor snarled.

"I'd rather see it all coming," Benny remarked, and then Eleanor's hands ignited with fiery Plasmids.

"He's brave, I'll give him that," Zachary commented.

"You'll definitely see immolation coming. It's easier, too. I'll start with your arms and legs. And once they become ashes, I will move onto the rest."

"Well, you're one sick, sadistic pussycat," Benny said.

Eleanor's hands moved in, but then she felt someone touch her shoulder. She straightened her back, flames extinguishing, and looked back. It was Zachary, who left his hand on her shoulder.

"You don't wanna wake up regretting what you chose to do. It starts with people who deserve it, then you won't know how to control yourself."

Eleanor just looked at him blankly. Her eyes lowered. A second later, she stepped away, pushing Zachary's hand off her.

"Eleanor, can you reject your genes?" Mother asked. Eleanor looked at her sternly, mother and daughter not breaking eye contact.

Blue Elizabeth was a little scared, expecting Eleanor to pounce, but nothing happened.

"Then what do we do with him?" Eleanor asked, gesturing at Benny, so Zachary delivered an uppercut into Benny's chin, knocking him out.

"That. And it's good enough, trust me," Zachary assured.

"I would have shot him," Daisy said.


	34. Chapter 34 - Escape from New York

Daisy spoke to her Vox forces at the airport entrance, the Handyman that Songbird encountered also with them. Also present were the Beasts she had spoken to earlier, two Vox Firemen, and what appeared to be the last Vox Zealot, armed with nothing but a sword. The front of his hood had an emblem of a white sword pointing down.

"So, we be goin' ta some lighthouse overseas?" an African-American Vox Beast asked.

"Maybe, or somethin' like that. It's called Rapture Lighthouse, located at 63° 2' North, 29° 55' West. I don't know how any of this is gonna work out, but apparently this is the only way to solvin' everythin'," Daisy replied. Her troops murmured.

"How's a lighthouse gonna fix dat machinery in deh skoiz?" an Irish Vox asked, but Daisy just shrugged.

"I sure dunno, but it's the only plan we got. Somethin' 'bout other worlds an' all. Guess Elizabeth and all just gotta take a leap a faith. We'll fly out and keep the horde away from the airport."

Off in the distance, the section of machinery in the sky that was slowly opening up, began booming with clanks and rattles. Farther into the city, some chunks of skyborne machinery fell. Sunlight beamed through, illuminating the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine. Although the cathedral was not visible from the airport, something would happen there.

The Vox heard howls and roars echo from Manhattan. The Vox Handyman crossed his arms with a grunt.

"Sounds like the horde's coming to us. Those bastards sure never give up," a Vox Fireman remarked, his fiery Vigors firing up. "Can't wait to _ignite_ them!"

"Then when they get here...let's give em what they want," Daisy said, unslinging her carbine.

Eleanor stood with her back to the wall in a hallway, head low, arms crossed. She hated whenever she saw Mother and Zachary get affectionate. Eleanor just wanted to be grumpy alone, but then felt someone tap her side.

"Grumpy?" Cindy asked, suddenly materializing out of nowhere. Eleanor chuckled. Cindy had washed her arms and face in the washroom, but was still quite dusty and dirty.

"Yes...grumpy," Eleanor admitted, but was glad to see Cindy.

"Why are you grumpy?"

"Oh...big girl things."

Eleanor didn't look like she wanted to talk. Noticing, then pausing for a second, Cindy got an idea and raised Little Daddy at Eleanor.

"But Little Daddy's here for you!" Cindy squeaked. Eleanor snickered, and smiled.

Though, it was not long until conflict came, interrupting the girls' moment. They overheard shouting.

"Someone's mad," Cindy remarked.

The girls headed to the lobby.

"...You touch her, I'll kill you! I should kill you! This is all your fault!" Booker's voice echoed.

"You keep your goddamn hands off me, son!" Zachary's voice boomed.

Eleanor and Cindy reached the lobby, seeing the others there. Booker and Zachary had gotten into an argument, Pinkerton Elizabeth and old Elizabeth looking a bit guilty and nervous. Blue Elizabeth stood with her mouth open, totally dumbstruck. The two Elizabeths tried to calm down the men, touching their shoulders, but that didn't work.

"You're the reason all this happened!" Booker accused.

"You're just accusing yourself, pal," Zachary said.

" _Son of a bitch_ \- you ain't me!" Booker yelled.

Cindy stepped behind Eleanor.

"It's the third time you deny it, Booker, how much longer will you?" Pinkerton Elizabeth asked with some firmness, clenching her hands and leaning at him. They made eye contact. "You've been to another world entirely," she briefly and slightly raised her arms, "you've seen all of this happen, you're obviously not in Columbia... And yet you still can't accept any of this? Don't you think that maybe reality is a bit more complex than you think?"

Booker dismissively waved an arm at Pinkerton Elizabeth. It seemed that every Booker DeWitt was as stubborn as the first.

"We are approaching the Apocalypse, and you want to fight against yourself?" old Elizabeth asked, then looked at blue Elizabeth, and sighed. "Elizabeth, Booker is your father, not Comstock."

Blue Elizabeth just looked at her old version blankly, then made eye contact with Booker for a moment.

"It's the truth, Elizabeth," Pinkerton Elizabeth said, then gave Booker a slight scowl. "Booker, tell her how you lost her."

Booker looked at Pinkerton Elizabeth rather angrily. Pinky just crossed her arms, not intimidated. Booker felt hurt by her words. She looked at his daughter.

"Go on, Elizabeth, ask your father how he lost his baby girl."

Booker's fists tightened, and he looked away.

"What happened to Anna, Booker? Please, tell us. The one who hired you is no more..." old Elizabeth said softly, then looked at blue Elizabeth, gesturing her.

"Booker..." blue Elizabeth squeaked, gently putting a hand on Booker's shoulder. He softly sighed, head low, but could not look back at Elizabeth's big blue eyes. "Booker... No matter what happened, I don't hate you. Never have, never will." She gently let her hand slide off Booker's shoulder. He did not make eye contact.

"I..." Booker hesitated.

"Yes?" his daughter whispered.

Booker looked at Zachary, and his knuckles turned white. He turned around and walked away, saying nothing.

"Booker! We just need to work together to get out of this alive!" blue Elizabeth pleaded, walking after him, but nothing was getting through his skull.

"Just let the truth out. You're only holding back the inevitable," Zachary said. Booker spun on his heels and glared.

"No matter what, I'm _not_ that old bastard!" Booker assured, briefly gesturing at Zachary, ready to hit someone. His daughter backed off a little, wondering if he would actually hit her.

"No matter what, we're the same guy, and we're in this together," Zachary stated. " _We_ let go of her. _We_ sold her. _We_ regretted our decision. _We_ stole her back from ourselves. We've done this, what... Millions of times? The only difference is that this time... This time, there's no debt to pay..."

The vein in Booker's temple throbbed at what Zachary said. Pinkerton Elizabeth noticed, and stepped forth to contain Booker's anger.

"You can just go to hell, you son of a bitch!" Booker yelled, rudely stepping through Pinkerton Elizabeth.

"Don't hurt her, you son of a bitch!" Zachary yelled back, aggressively approaching Booker, who in turn pushed the old man back.

Booker would have thrown a punch, but blue Elizabeth grabbed his arm. Face red, Booker stepped around Elizabeth. He and Zachary stepped to each other, Zachary pushing Booker back. Booker grabbed Zachary, but Zachary shoved Booker's arms aside.

"You keep your hands off me! You hear!?" Zachary shouted, stepping into Booker, and the two men nearly headbutted each other.

Booker's hand looked like clay and his veins glowed, and Zachary's hand formed small electrical currents. Both men contemplated if they should withdraw their guns, worrying the Elizabeths.

"No! Stop this right now!" old Elizabeth exclaimed as if yelling at kids, the two big boys looking at her for a moment.

"Stop fighting! Please, just stop!" blue Elizabeth pleaded, pulling Booker's arm back, Pinkerton Elizabeth grabbing Zachary's arm. Both men jerked their arms free, but at least they weren't in each other's faces anymore.

Zachary contemptuously waved an arm at Booker, and stepped away from him. Angry, Booker grabbed Zachary by the shoulder, so Zachary spun around and shoved him. They started to fight. Booker performed a Bucking Bronco charge, but Zachary spun around him and pushed him, using his momentum against him. The two faced each other and threw punches, cracking each other's faces open. Before the Elizabeths could do anything, the men fell and wrestled on the floor.

Blue Elizabeth's mouth dropped, and she put a hand over it.

"I think we told Booker too much," old Elizabeth remarked sadly.

"Yes, I think we did," Pinkerton Elizabeth agreed. "But we didn't tell him that much... We can't tell Daisy anything about this."

"You're right. But... I thought Booker would handle it. I thought he would have reached far enough to know, yet...this one didn't," old Elizabeth said.

A few Irishmen came to the scene to watch the fight.

"Ey! Look at em fight!" an Irish Mobster remarked, and then about ten more Irish guys ran over to watch the fight, enjoying themselves.

"Dat girl's missin' an eye?" another Irishman mumbled.

"Why are they fighting?" Cindy asked Eleanor.

"Well, Cindy, men never grow up. They just become bigger boys," Eleanor replied.

Eleanor walked forth, using her psychokinesis to pull the two Bookers apart, both men pawing at each other as they slid. They got up, Eleanor stood between them. Her telekinesis kicked in, and she shoved Zachary and Booker off their feet.

"Is this how real men behave?" Eleanor asked, clasping her hands behind her back, looking at Booker, then at Zachary. "Or does the sixteen-year-old girl have to babysit grown men all day?" Eleanor's words sure grabbed their attention. In fact, the men said nothing as they picked themselves up.

Booker felt his nose bleed, then angrily approached Zachary, intending to swerve around Eleanor. She stepped in front of Booker, leaning into him so that her forehead bumped his.

"Stay out of my way, girl," Booker almost threatened, stepping around Eleanor. She grabbed him, pulled him in front of her, and leaned into him. Eleanor glared.

"Or what?" she asked the rather surprised man, who did not expect such strength from a teenager. The Irishmen overlooking the fight were as surprised as Booker.

Cindy hugged her Big Daddy doll, knees bending a little, shoulders raised.

Mr. DeWitt furrowed his eyebrows, and took a step back. Eleanor let go of him. His Vigor deactivated. He and Zachary scowled at each other, both men clenching their fists.

"They are their genes, Eleanor."

Eleanor turned her head, and saw Mother casually standing a short distance away, arms crossed, a lit cigarette in her hand. Nearby were what appeared to be Mother's bodyguards, several Irishmen with Tommy guns. The Bookers did not care.

"I can only hope you do not become like them, as your father would," Mother remarked, then lifted her cig to smoke it.

"As long as I'm not you, that's good enough," Eleanor replied. Mother softly huffed, then let a mouthful of smoke leave her.

"Zachary, do you reject your genes and the self? Would you do that for me?" Sofia Lamb asked in her usual sweet yet sinister voice, ignoring Eleanor. Sofia's words made Zachary sigh and lower his head.

"Yes, Sofia. I'd do anything for you," Zachary replied, his Plasmid deactivating.

"I do not wish to see my Zachary become his inner monster, " Ms. Lamb remarked, then took another go at her cigarette. She did not have to say anything else for Zachary to calm down and walk away.

Once they got close enough, Sofia hugged Zachary and gave him a soft kiss. Mother then looked at Eleanor in her passively self-righteous kind of way. Eleanor immediately got irritated.

 _That bitch... She did that on purpose..._ Eleanor thought to herself. Mother seemed to read her mind. At least Booker and Zachary stopped fighting. Booker shook his head and walked away.

"Were it not for what's going on now... I'd kill you," Booker grumbled, but kept going.

Blue Elizabeth sighed with relief, watching Booker go. She looked out the entrance, seeing Songbird leaning down outside, looking through the entrance, probably to make sure Booker wouldn't hurt her. His yellow eyes were as cautious as ever, but the buzzard seemed to trust Booker and Zachary enough to not freak out quickly.

"Booker?" blue Elizabeth called, then went after him, wanting to talk and calm him down.

"He's always a problem, hunh?" Pinkerton Elizabeth remarked.

"Always the same. Always," old Elizabeth agreed. She sighed, putting her hands to her heart. "We don't have much time. If we have to go back to Rapture, we need to, before _he_ comes. As the sun rises, he begins returning."

"Then there's no way we'll go across the Atlantic in time," Pinkerton Elizabeth said. She started smoking. _Might as well enjoy something before I die._

"Eleanor?" Cindy called. Eleanor turned her head. "Follow me, please, I found something important when I was gone."

Eleanor followed Cindy across the lobby, glad to have a reason to just get away from Mother.

"What did you find?" Eleanor asked.

"You'll see!" Cindy squeaked.

Soon, the child her Big Sister to a section of the airport that had various wounded citizenry. Most lied on the floor in makeshift beds, bandaged up. Cindy scuttled to one of the injured men, who sat at the wall, sleeping. He had bloodied wrappings around his head and midsection. Cindy started patting the injured man's bandaged head, and he snorted awake.

Cindy then spun on her heels, cocked her head, and grinned, "Look who's here!"

"Huh? What?" the man mumbled, lifting his head.

Eleanor furrowed her eyebrows, rather surprised.

"Julian? You're...here," Eleanor said.

"Hm? Oh, hey Eleanor, fancy meeting you here!" Julian Sinclair exclaimed, then groaned and coughed. "Sorry about being such a mess. One of those... big things... tried to eat my guts. I emptied six rounds into his head. Bastard still didn't go down, heh heh... I barely escaped."

"I'm glad you survived."

"What happened to your eye? Did the things take it out?" Sinclair asked.

"I got shot in the face," Eleanor answered. Sinclair's eyes widened.

"You survived gettin' shot in the face?" he asked, amazed.

"Yes, but there's no time to talk about that. A woman named Elizabeth believes we have to go back to Rapture for a leap of faith. I think she believes it's the only way to end all this. Though, I doubt those zeppelins can fly fast enough to get back to Rapture quickly," Eleanor said.

"Hm? Back to Rapture, you say? Let's take my plane. It was ready to fly to Paris before...all this happened. I can get it ready for lift-off quick," Sinclair said, picking himself up with a groan. Eleanor's eye went big, then she helped Sinclair stand.

"You want to fly? Like this?"

"Hell yes! If I'm breathin', I'm workin."

"How are we gonna land your plane at Rapture?" Eleanor asked, but Julian just chuckled.

"Same way Jack did," a woman remarked. Eleanor turned her head and noticed Pinkerton Elizabeth standing nearby, her back to the wall, arms crossed. "He crashed his plane into the ocean, then swam to the lighthouse."

"Sounds good to me," Julian acknowledged.

"Are you both insane? Julian, even if you do safely land on the water, there's no way you can swim to the Rapture Lighthouse."

"Who says I'll survive the crash landing?" Julian asked, and Eleanor let go of him. He stood on his own, but Eleanor did not like what he said.

"Sinclair..."

"Nah, nah, nah... Eleanor, I'm already done for. Without a hospital, and with whatever the hell is going on... There's no way I'm gonna make it another day. Just let me fly, one more time, before I die."

"Risking a crash landing into the ocean can get us all killed," Eleanor said.

"Hmm. Oh! Well, Songbird can carry us down to the Rapture Lighthouse, two by two. The old me says we have no time left. We need to take a plane, nothing else is fast enough, and I doubt Songbird can carry us all or pull a zeppelin," Pinkerton Elizabeth explained. "There's nothing else we can do. Either this, or we all wait for our deaths."

"I...you're right. _Uhh..._ Alright, Sinclair, we'll do it your way."

" _Yyyesss!_ Ahh hah hah hah!" Sinclair weakly cheered, then clutched his sternum from pain. "I always wanted to retire the day I die. Let's get goin', I can't wait to fly again. I can't stand what happened to New York."

"But... I won't forgive myself if you die," Eleanor said as Julian began walking.

"Sometimes, all you need is your life to lose," Sinclair said.

Then, they heard booming clanking echoing from the skies, as powerful as thunder, enough to shake the floor. Cindy jumped, and hugged Little Daddy.

"Time's up," a man said, causing everyone to look to the side. It was Michael, yet again, standing with his back to the wall, arms spread apart, empty eye sockets leaking blood. "Neh, heh, heh, heh, heh _hehhhh_ , hih!" he laughed without as much vigour as he used to.

Eleanor grasped Michael with her psychokinesis, lifted him up, and slammed him head-first into the floor, his neck making a meaty crunch. Michael picked himself weakly, then cracked his neck back into proper position, Cindy shivering and grimacing at the popping sounds.

Pinkerton Elizabeth withdrew _The Ambassador_ and shot Michael in the head twice, leaving two red holes in his forehead, but he did nothing. The gunfire caused some panic, the injured people nearby gasping and leaning away.

"Well, he ain't going down easy, just like those things!" Sinclair remarked, Michael looking at him, then at Elizabeth.

"Shouldn't you be focusing on your journey, rather than wasting ammo? You can't kill what can't die, nor make the dead any deader," Michael asked as Elizabeth approached him.

Pinkerton Elizabeth kneed him in the crotch, and he leaned over from pain. She then headbutted Michael in the nose, put her foot behind his ankle, and pushed him over. At the same time, she summoned a Tear of the floor. Michael fell through the Tear, and Elizabeth closed it.

"But I can shut you up...for a while," she remarked, holstering her revolver. "Alright, Mr. Sinclair, you're flying us back to Rapture. Let's go." They began walking toward the entrance. "I hope Booker calmed down by now..."

"What do you mean it can go faster than Songbird?" Booker asked, following the Elizabeths, Eleanor, and Sinclair outside, Cindy waddling behind Eleanor.

Songbird stepped back from the entrance, letting everyone pass, but Sinclair flinched at the sight of the buzzard. Then, the Vox Handyman looked at Sinclair, and he flinched again.

"Hi, Big Angel!" Cindy exclaimed, waving at Songbird. He cocked his head at her.

"Let's just say, that airplanes have gotten better since your time," Pinkerton Elizabeth answered Booker. "It's our only hope of ending this, once and for all."

"Huh. Well, this leap of faith to Rapture better work," Booker said.

"It will," Pinkerton Elizabeth assured.

"Where's Zachary?" blue Elizabeth asked.

"We don't need him, let's keep going," Booker replied.

"The plane's this way. Walk shouldn't take more than a few minutes," Sinclair said.

The booming clanking returned, echoing throughout the skyborne machinery, causing Cindy to jump from fright. Sinclair and the others spun around, as did the Vox over yonder, looking at where the noise came from. Where sunlight shone through the skyborne machinery onto the cathedral, the machines up there began to unfurl. More roaring and howling echoed as well, but soon died off.

"We need to go, now!" old Elizabeth shouted at everyone.

"Right this way!" Sinclair agreed.

"Hey! Where you all going?" Zachary called, having just ran out the airport.

"We're leaving, and you're not coming with us," Booker yelled back.

"You ain't going without me," Zachary shouted, and then everyone heard the echoes of chaos, which was so powerful, everyone had to cover their ears.

Where the skyborne machinery unfurled, immense sections collapsed, mechanical columns raining down and striking the skyscrapers and streets below. The howling and roaring returned. Once the loud noise stopped, everyone could concentrate again. Songbird looked off in the distance, eyes yellow.

"I'm scared..." Cindy said, stepping against Eleanor's leg. Big Sister stroked Cindy's head.

"We'll be safe, I promise."

The massive clanking returned, many covering their ears. More sections of the skyborne machinery started erupting asunder, immense, serpentine mechanical arms breaking through. The arms each had a big red eye in the palm, and slowly protracted and retracted under the skyborne machinery while swaying.

"Just like the one that grabbed me..." Pinkerton Elizabeth mumbled, her skin crawling at the grotesque sight.

"Does everything have to get weirder and weirder?" blue Elizabeth asked, rather startled.

About a hundred mechanical arms appeared throughout the city, spaced apart by a mile or so. Every few seconds, another would burst through the skyborne machinery, and begin scanning the streets.

The howling of the horde returned, now constant. Songbird made a loud wheezing sound.

"Everyone into the zeppelins, now! Doubletime!" Daisy barked, and the Vox began boarding their airships.

"I meet horde, hold them back, smash them! Buy you time!" the Vox Handyman said, then darted off to engage the horde by himself.

"Godspeed!" the Vox Zealot exclaimed, Murder of Crows forming around him.

"And we gotta get into the plane! Let's go!" Pinkerton Elizabeth exclaimed, and off everyone went.

"Into the other Big Angel! But these ones doesn't have moving arms," Cindy said to herself.

Another massive crash. Chunks of metal rained down around everyone, everyone covering their heads. Songbird shielding blue Elizabeth with his wings. Directly above everyone, a mechanical hand appeared, beaming red light down upon them.

Eleanor covered her face with her arms, and kept moving with everyone. So long as she did not stare directly into the light, she did not go all static and weird, but her skin and spine tingled.

Songbird wailed, eyes going red as well, and he flew up to confront the giant arm. The mechanical arm turned to face Songbird, both their eyes beaming at each other. The arm swung, but Songbird swerved around it, the dove into the wrist. Songbird's tackle caused the arm to flinch, and the buzzard started grabbing its mechanical parts and breaking them. Blood squirted out onto Songbird, and the arm waved, trying to throw the buzzard off itself.

"Keep it busy, Songbird!" blue Elizabeth exclaimed, and the run to Sinclair's plane continued, even though the injured pilot limped and bled.

Songbird wailed and fought up above, bits of machinery and torrents of blood falling from his airborne fight. Eleanor used her telekinesis to divert some falling debris away from everyone, and for once, the path to their current objective seemed easier than usual.

The Vox zeppelins began to lift-off, firing rocketry at the incoming horde, who had crossed via the Triborough Bridge. It would only be a matter of time before the fleshy monsters reached the airport, but had to run the gauntlet of rockets and Vox guns.

More massive booms and echoing clanks sounded. This time, several mechanical arms shot down, striking into a few zeppelins. Three zeppelins crashed down in flames, two landing nearby everyone. Fire, smoke and debris erupted, spraying across the runway.

"Dammit! Everyone alright?" Booker yelled, shielding his face from the flames.

"I am! Anyone else?" blue Elizabeth asked, then began coughing. One by one, everyone else said they were alright, but Eleanor had to pick up Cindy.

A number of people emerged from the two wreckages, most coughing and struggling for breath, but alive. Surprisingly, amongst the survivors was Daisy, as well as the Vox Zealot, a Fireman (unaffected by the flames), and three Beasts.

"Hey! Over here!" Booker yelled, so the surviving Vox ran towards them.

"Looks like I'm stickin' around ya'll after all!" Daisy exclaimed.

"The plane's just over there!" Sinclair said, and then everyone heard hissing and howling. A score of fleshy monsters appeared, darting down the runway.

Booker withdrew his Burstgun, blue Elizabeth and old Elizabeth took out a Broadsider Pistol each, Pinkerton Elizabeth got her revolver, Daisy raised her carbine, the Beasts lifted their rocket-launching, the Fireman launched Devil's Kiss, the Zealot unleashed his murderous crows, and Eleanor lobbed fireballs. The mix of bullets, Vigors and Plasmids struck the fleshy monsters heavily.

The Beasts and Fireman charged, tackling their ironclad frames into fleshy monsters, Beasts beating them with their guns. The Fireman ended up atop a fleshy monster, and repeatedly headbutted the monster, or helm-butted. The fleshy monsters threw their foes off, but the monsters were nonetheless gunned down by sheer numbers.

Booker slung his Burstgun over his shoulder, then withdrew both Hand Cannons, suitable weapons against such bulky monsters. Booker and Pinkerton Elizabeth would sometimes fire at point-blank range, waiting for the fleshy monsters to go up-close, then ramming their revolvers into the monsters' mouths and firing, shattering the spinal cord at the back of the mouth, resulting in immediate death.

The Zealot relied on constant teleporting with his crows while chopping up fleshy monsters. The Fireman simply charged, going face-to-face with the meaty beasts and burning them up while swinging his ironclad fists and head like flails.

Zachary and Booker threw various Vigor traps. Shock Jockey electrified, Devil's Kiss exploded, Bucking Bronco levitated, and Possession turned fleshy monsters against themselves, creating chaos.

Amidst the chaotic flurry of action, everyone heard wailing, and looked up. The buzzard swooped down, dragging its talons along the ground and ripping open several fleshy monsters. Songbird then landed atop a few others, and started swinging his arms, legs and wings about madly, smashing more and more fleshy monsters into paste.

The two younger Elizabeths each summoned a Motorized Patriot to help even up the odds!

"Made to fight against the Prophet's enemies, remade for the cause of the Vox, now destined to face monsters!" one of the Patriots stated, cranking his weapon and mowing down some fleshy monsters.

"You fight for Daisy? But I had fought The False Prophet moments ago!" the other exclaimed, joining in the gunfight.

"Yet we both understand the greater threat! If only the Founders and the Vox had joined forces, the former Boy of Silence, Michael, would have surely fallen!" the previous patriot said.

With so much combined firepower, everyone blasted their way through a few dozen fleshy monsters. The Motorized Patriots gunned down more, then ran forth to club beasts down, distracting them further. This allowed everyone else to head to a series of planes along the runway.

Sinclair led everyone to his plane, Eleanor getting memories of when Sinclair flew all around the world to return the Little Sisters to their true homes. To think that Spirry had transformed the world into the ugliest of hells...

Sinclair's airplane was already on the runway, ready for takeoff. Even its staired entranceway was left open. Sinclair was first to go up, everyone else following, though the Zealot teleported into the plane. The Fireman deactivated his fiery Plasmids, for obvious reasons.

"I just need a few minutes to get the plane runnin'!" Sinclair exclaimed, running to the cockpit.

Entering the airplane, Eleanor put Cindy down. The child ran to a seat, looking out the window. Eleanor felt a sigh of relief, but it was short-lived. Halfway down the airplane, at a seat, having a cigarette, was...

"Oh, look. Mother reached Sinclair's vessel first. Again."

"She abandoned her congregation again, too," Eleanor commented, rather annoyed. Mother just briefly lifted her eyebrows while looking at and smoking her cigarette.

Zachary stood nearby, holding his sniper rifle, which was smoking at the barrel. He must have been sniping out the entrance of the plane moments ago.

"You're here, too?" Booker asked angrily. Pinkerton Elizabeth rolled her eyes.

" _Ugh..._ Just take a seat, Booker. Mind your own business for once in your life."

Eleanor closed the plane entrance, "Alright, we're ready to fly Sinclair."

The plane engines roared to life, and it soon began to drive down the runway. Sinclair steered away from the crashed zeppelins, and could see the other Vox vessels shooting like crazy at the horde below. The zeppelins flew low to avoid the mechanical arms.

As the plane drove, some fleshy monsters stupidly ran in the way, and got run over. Everyone heard tapping sounds.

"Sounds like they're trying to climb in. I'll deal with them!" Eleanor said, and teleported outside.

Reappearing on the runway, Eleanor could see several fleshy monsters who managed to jump on the plane. While running after the plane, she used psychokinesis to pull them down, one by one, then threw fiery Plasmids at them.

The Zealot reappeared on the wing of the plane, knees bent low to stabilize himself, robes fluttering. He cast Murder of Crows at the fleshy monsters, and while one climbed up the wing, he drove his sword into the monster's mouth. He then kicked it off the wing, and Eleanor threw fireballs at it. Another fleshy monster climbed the wing and jumped at the Zealot, but just as he sliced its hand open, he teleported to the other wing, crows following him, and the fleshy monster fell off the wing. Once all the fleshy monsters were off, the Zealot and Eleanor teleported back into the plane.

Wheels struggling to get off the runway, the plane shifted up and down. To make things worse, a few dozen fleshy monsters ran across the runway together, then ran down, as if intending to charge into the plane!

"Not sure if totally fearless, or totally brainless!" Sinclair exclaimed, and his plane's wheels lifted off the runway. He heard some meaty thuds, too. But, at least the plane was airborne, many passengers looking out the windows.

Off in the distance, they could see the section of unfurled skyborne machinery. Descending from the sunlight, were a series of chains, lowering a fifty-foot hypercube that had the texture of Shadow Tears. The shadowy machinery then cracked apart.

As if hatching from an egg, some sort of entity emerged from the hypercube. It pushed apart the hypercube, and gracefully hovered, slowly moving its arms. The sunlight revealed the entity to be something almost as big as Songbird. Like Songbird, the entity had a bipedal body, two arms and shoulders, and large wings at its back. He had long claws at the hands and feet.

Even when in direct sunlight, the entity had a pitch-black, glossy body, and a large tapering tail longer than its height. The entity had a face similar to that of a black dragonfish, though most of the face was concealed by long hair. His cranial hair reached his hips, and was as glossy and black as the entity's body.

As if a newborn, the entity suddenly made a sharp inhale, opening his mouth to such an extent his jaws overextended and made popping sounds, and his long, black, reptilian tongue curled upward. His large circular eyes beamed a faint yellow colour. Curiously enough, his nervous system, brain, heart, and spinal cord glowed red, visibly shining underneath his glossy black body.

The entity's heart started audibly beating. His mouth leaked darkly glowing red blood, flowing through his fangs and down his chest. Blood also trickled out his eye sockets.

Closing his mighty mandibles, then lifting his chin, the entity cocked his head. He inhaled, then opened his mouth again, letting off a mechanical scream, sounding like something between screeching machinery and sharp static noises. The monster's screech echoed throughout Manhattan. Still using just a single breath, the scream gradually intensified and became deeper. As more and more blood gushed out its mouth, its scream became guttural and bestial, with the last few seconds having strong vibrato.

Still hovering with its wings, the entity went into a fetal position, and started shaking. He suddenly dove forth, and flew off, wings beating with the rapidity of a small bird. He flew after the plane...

Back inside the plane, Cindy stared out her window, playing with her Big Daddy doll. She then stuck her forehead into the glass, and smiled.

At the other side of the plan, blue Elizabeth sat by the window, and seemed quite interested in the plane. She excitedly looked out her window, preoccupied with wonder. A while later, she saw Songbird, flying alongside the plane. The two made eye contact, blue eyes staring at green eyes, and Elizabeth waved at Songbird. He cocked his head, then waved back. Elizabeth giggled. She never knew a day like this would happen, when Songbird was actually a friend.

"Oo! Another Big Angel is coming!" Cindy suddenly exclaimed, blue Elizabeth turning her head to look at the child.

"What the hell is that?" Booker asked nonchalantly, who happened to be looking out a window and saw the black entity flying towards him.

"Yeah, what is that? It's flyin' towards us..." Daisy said, and then others looked. Sofia Lamb was the only one who didn't seem to care.

"It's flying really fast, and it's not Songbird," Pinkerton Elizabeth commented. Old Elizabeth kept silent, looking scared, and breathed lightly and slowly.

Eleanor took a look outside, then darted to the cockpit.

"Sinclair! Can you go faster? Something is flying after us!"

"Not really, and I can't go any higher, or I'll fly into those sky-machines!"

"Dammit! If I teleport outside, there's no way I'm getting back in!" Eleanor spat at herself.

Outside, the black entity came closer and closer, breathing with greater vigour, yellow eyes beaming on the left engine.

Meanwhile, blue Elizabeth knocked on her window, making a childishly frightened face. Songbird noticed, and saw Elizabeth pointing to the back of the plane. Songbird's eyes beamed red, and he shrieked, flying over the plane. Elizabeth heard and felt the whoosh of Songbird.

The black entity was about to dive into the back of the plane, but he looked up, and Songbird tackled into him. The two clutched against each other, clawing and pawing, and fell in each other's grasp. Being larger, heavier and stronger, Songbird could have overpowered the monster, but two Shadow Tears appeared above them. Numerous mechanical lengths whipped out the Shadow Tears, hooking Songbird's arms and wings, and pulled him back. The whiplash made him let off a mechanical croak.

Songbird wailed, looking side to side, unsure of what was going on. He kicked and flapped, but could not free himself. The black entity swooped up, seeing the buzzard thrashing violent to free himself, but he was quite stuck between the Shadow Tears. Each system of machinery retracted into either Tear, firmly holding Songbird in place. He looked off to the side, seeing the plane fly away.

As the monster fly past Songbird, his right palm formed a Shadow Tear, and a mechanical length slid out. The black entity whipped his mechanical length around Songbird's neck, then it retracted into the Shadow Tear on his palm, pulling the entity toward Songbird with great speed.

Left hand conjuring a hulking mass of whiteness until icebound, the entity punched his ice-covered left hand into Songbird's face, and the buzzard's head bounced back. Affixed to Songbird's front, right hand grasping the mechanical length around Songbird's neck, the black entity began smashing Songbird's face with his icebound left hand, cracking both its lenses.

Upon regaining his mechanical senses, Songbird screamed in defiance, and headbutted the black entity. The monster reared a bit, then Songbird lunged his beak into the entity's face, giving it a bigger headache. The black entity shook his head from pain, and that was when both Shadow Tears closed, cutting clean through the systems of machinery. Down everything fell.

Songbird clawed at the black entity, but it quickly let go of him and dodged Songbird's mighty claws. The buzzard writhed free and rolled mid-air, swooping from the waters below, cut machinery splashing against the waves.

As Songbird ascended, he looked around for the black entity, and found him flying after the plane again. Wailing, The Bird flew after his opponent, who looked back, seeing his pursuer. The black entity's hands formed ice and whiteness, and he began tossing Old Man Winter traps behind him, the traps floating mid-air.

Songbird had a hunch he should avoid the Plasmids, and swerved, feeling the traps erupt into freezing masses that then fell into the ocean. Dodging a series of icy Plasmid traps, Songbird caught up to the black entity, and dove at him, but the monster evaded Songbird on the last moment.

Grunting, Songbird dove at the black entity again. Again, he missed. Songbird barrel-rolled, avoiding another icy trap, but learned that the entity was much more agile than he ever could be. So, he stretched his arms forth, mechanical claws reaching out to clamp on the monster's tail or leg, anything to slow it down.

The black entity aligned his wings and steered off to the side, twirling around and blasting an electrostatic discharge at Songbird. He shook from electrocution and plummeted, but quickly snapped out of it, and flew after the monster, screeching angrily.

Swerving to the other side, the black entity threw masses of freezing at Songbird, but The Buzzard dodged them. For something so huge and mechanical, Songbird sure was agile. Irritated at the monster's ranged attacks, Songbird barrel-rolled, dodging a few more Old Man Winters, but he then gently grabbed one. It formed first on his hand, but did not erupt into freezing.

Songbird got an idea, and flew after the monster as fast as he could, dodging a mix of freezing and electrical Plasmids. The black entity swerved side to side, and so did Songbird, gradually closing the distance. Songbird flew higher than his prey, and feigned a dive, making the monster move to the side. Songbird tilted, swooping at the monster and grabbing its immense tail, pulling on it.

The monster tilted his head back and grunted from his tail being pulled. Songbird pulled on the beast's tail again, pulling him back, and slammed the Old Man Winter Plasmid against the monster's back. The Plasmid erupted into freezing, spreading to the base of both wings and the shoulders.

Unable to fully utilize his wings, the black entity began to fall. Songbird dove into the monster's backside, just enough to prevent the ice breaking. Lifting his knees, Songbird placed his talons against the monster's back, then drove him down into the water. After the water splashed, Songbird swooped up and flew away, following the plane.

Songbird did not hear or see the black entity anymore.


	35. Chapter 35 - Presence

The plane flew. The farther it went from New York, the shorter the skyborne machines were, until the sky was just one endless shadow Tear, or so that's how it appeared.

"I have a funny feel, that you shouldn't fly too high into the sky," Eleanor remarked, standing by Sinclair in the cockpit. She looked at him.

"Yeah, that'll work. Ugh..."

"Sinclair, are you alright?"

"Yeah, just in a bit of pain. Don't worry about me, kiddo, I'm doin' alright." Though, that did not seem to be the case. Julian's body was more blooded, but he was as stubborn as he was selfless.

Eleanor's head dropped. She felt terrible that Julian had to suffer for her sake, just like his brother. At that thought, the image of Rapture popped in Eleanor's head.

 _Am I... going home?_

"You should go take a rest, Eleanor. I'll fly my girl well enough."

Eleanor softly put her hand on Sinclair's shoulder, then left the cockpit. She looked down the aisle, seeing the Bookers and Elizabeths here and there, totally exhausted, asleep like logs. Mother sat by Zachary, her head on his shoulder. Only Pinkerton Elizabeth wasn't asleep, and she sat alone at the back of the plane, looking out the window with her arms crossed. Even the Vox forces were fast asleep, the Fireman snoring a little. Ravens were perched on either shoulder of the Zealot. Cindy, however, was making funny faces in her window whenever she saw Songbird. Eleanor smiled. Cindy was too cute.

Pinkerton Elizabeth felt her eyelids getting heavy. She stretched and yawned a little, then rubbed her eyes. She slowly moved her hand into her jacket, withdrew her Pinkerton badge, and just stared at the silver. Elizabeth then gasped when she realized Eleanor was suddenly sitting next to her, and dropped her badge.

"You're a Pinkerton?" Eleanor asked, then picked up the badge. "I've seen one of these before. Maybe you happen to know why they tried to kill me?"

"Because I told them to," Elizabeth answered nonchalantly.

The two girls just stared at each other. Eleanor gradually frowned, but she gave back Elizabeth her badge, which she put back into her jacket.

"And then...I felt bad about it, and got Boo-...Zachary...to go after you, just like he would have...gone after me. I knew he wouldn't actually listen to me, and whatever love he had left for me... I just wanted him to rescue you, and have some quality time with a daughter, finally..." She uncomfortably chuckled. "Though, Benny knew about everything. He must have collaborated with Michael, and Michael told him everything. Benny just wanted your medallion, like me. And wanted you dead, too, like me. I was...not thinking straight. I struggled with myself..."

"Elizabeth, how did you know about me, and why did you want me dead?"

Elizabeth lightly groaned, putting a hand on her head, screechy static and echoing tuning reverberating throughout her big skull. Blood ran out her nose, so she wiped it away.

"I... I don't remember?" Elizabeth asked herself. She put both hands on her head then leaned over, elbows on her knees. She grimaced, inhaling through clenched teeth as the tuning and static came back. Eleanor even felt the static vibrate through her skin.

"Are you alright?" Eleanor asked.

"I will be. Ugh... Why can't I remember? Think, Elizabeth, think... Don't forget everything about yourself..."

Eleanor waited. Sighing, she looked around. She stared at the sleeping Booker.

"Huh. You know... I dreamt of that man before. Something took control of me, but I can't remember what or why. Into his office I went, and found a baby. He and I met face to face, and I gave him back his baby. Can't remember what happened next. There was another man, his name was-"

"Spirry," Elizabeth finished for Eleanor, then slowly lifted her head and looked at her. Elizabeth's head was slightly tilted, face loose, eyes fully open, mouth slightly open.

"Yes?" Eleanor asked, but Elizabeth just stared for a couple seconds. She then returned to normal, and sat back in her seat. "What's wrong?"

"You reminded me of my nightmares. I've never had a good sleep since...I left Rapture."

"You said _his_ name. What do you know about Spirry?"

Elizabeth slowly inhaled, then exhaled more slowly. She looked at Eleanor, appearing anxious.

"I went to his...lair. And I saw him."

"His lair? What did he look like?"

"He's a giant, with pasty white skin. No eyes, no nose, fangs like a snake. Has a glass covering for his belly. His organs...reminded me of sea slugs. I think he was a lone scientist jam-packed with sea slugs. And his home... A huge machine that was like an arm, or a snake, with a big red eye in its palm, pulled me in. It was just like the ones that burst through the skyborne machinery... Oh God, _his_ lair was horrible. Skinless, deformed bodies with stretched faces were packed under the floor, then I saw a floor of them later on. There was a system of bodies merged into a bigger one. Tried to kill me. I had to shoot some of them after they writhed out the floor of flesh. I don't really want to talk about it, actually."

Eleanor did not even look skeptical. She recalled when she was attacked by that mechanical arm-thing, and had a feeling it was the same one that grabbed Elizabeth.

"Well, when we get back to Rapture, we will finish all of this."

"We won't. There's more to it than Rapture," Elizabeth warned, head dropping.

"And why is that?" Eleanor asked. Elizabeth looked at her with a loose face and empty eyes again.

"I, I..." Elizabeth hesitated, then held her breath. "When I sent the Pinkerton's to kill you, knowing you were in the hospital after Benny took your medallion... I remember seeing behind all the doors..."

"Doors? Do you mean those Tears?" Eleanor asked, Elizabeth nodded. "What are they?"

"Tears are passages to other dimensions, other worlds. I can change things, bring things from other worlds, go into other worlds... Quantum superposition, quantum mechanics. I have a feeling you know about them," Elizabeth explained weakly.

"I'm not a quantum scientist, but yes, I know a little about quantum mechanics."

"Tears allow me to see the past and future. And when I could see behind all the doors, I remember that behind one of them, I saw you."

"You saw me? And what did you see?"

"Darkness."

Silence.

"That doesn't explain much."

" _Eleanor's Darkness_."

Eleanor made a quizzical look. Spirry had said the same phrase long ago.

"Okay... So what does that mean?"

"It means you became like _him_."

Another silence.

"When I saw that, I had to be sure if you survived or not. So, I went after Zachary, and I saw you. I opened a Tear, to send you far away, so that you would not become like _him,_ and not have to die. That was when I realized you looked so much like me. If the Luteces wanted you to have a medallion, so that you could learn to open Tears, and you look so much like me, then... I think you are... No, that wouldn't make any sense..." Elizabeth somewhat rambled.

"I'm finding you rather hard to follow," Eleanor commented, Elizabeth rubbing her sleepy eyes.

"But, there was someone else... Michael... He became like _him_ before you. I...I just don't remember how. I think it was called... _merging_? No, it was something else..." Elizabeth continued her speculations, then she looked a little bitchy. "We have to kill Michael. I could only slow him down, but...mother said... What did she say? I don't remember, but we have to open two Tears in him at the same time to kill him. Because... Wait, let me think... No. Wait, yes... He's not an individual, he is...something else. He is not a single entity."

"So he is a duality," Eleanor suggested.

"Yeah...I guess you could say that. We open two Tears in him, divide him... That's the only way to find out. Then, I will see behind all the doors again. I bet he saw me reaching this conclusion, that's why he tried to kill me on the flagship," Elizabeth said, then yawned. She wiped her bloody mouth, then sunk in her seat.

"Alright. You look exhausted, I should leave you alone," Eleanor said, and slowly stood.

"Oh, and Eleanor..."

"Yes?"

"Eleanor, child, I'm...I'm so sorry." Elizabeth froze, feeling Eleanor put a hand on her shoulder. The two girls looked at each other, both pairs of tired, big blue eyes unblinking.

"I will not misjudge you, Elizabeth. I forgive you." Eleanor took her hand off Elizabeth.

Pinkerton Elizabeth felt weight fall off her shoulders. Her breathing slowed, but she felt better. She couldn't find words to say. She expected Eleanor to hate her, and then kill her, like what she did to Comstock in Rapture. But no, Eleanor was forgiving.

Ms. Lamb walked down the aisle, Cindy turning and smiling at her, then putting the seat next to her. Chuckling, Eleanor sat by Cindy.

"What have you been up to? Being a brat?" Eleanor asked.

"Hih hee! Nnnoo!" Cindy assured.

"Not so loud, people are asleep," Eleanor hushed.

"Oopsie," Cindy covered her mouth with both hands. "Eleanor?" she asked quietly, lowering her hands.

"Yes?"

"Are we all...gonna die?"

"No, Cindy, no... We're gonna get through this. I promise. We beat Rapture, and we'll beat this, too." Cindy looked eager.

"Yeah! That's right, Eleanor, we'll win this! No one beats Big Sister!"

Eleanor suddenly yawned, Cindy staring and then yawning as well. Eleanor stretched, Cindy stretched as well.

" _Ughh..._ I really need some sleep."

"Yeah, me to," Cindy agreed, then snuggled against Eleanor's arm. With her other hand, Eleanor stroked Cindy's blond hair. It was not long until both girls fell asleep.

* * *

She dreamt she stood in a room, holding a baby, standing in a puddle of blood. Everything was greyscale. Eleanor looked down upon the blue-eyed baby she held, and the baby girl looked up at her, kicking a little, but calm. Eleanor felt her Big Sister suit on her body, and there was blood on her face.

 _I'm back here..._ Eleanor thought to herself. She heard footfall, and slowly turned around. She saw Booker, standing silently, breathing steadily but heavily, his rugged visage focused on the young woman, but the beast within him did not pounce. He had forgotten to grab his pistol from the floor, and felt his heart pummelling his chest. Yet, Eleanor obviously did not have a bad demeanour. For some reason, Booker trusted her, and he calmed down a little.

The two stood in silence for several seconds, neither saying or doing anything.

"Give... her back." Booker finally said. The girl looked down at the baby in her arms, then looked back at Booker. "Please..."

"Mr. Spirry told me you were a sinful man," Eleanor remarked. Booker looked at her weird.

"Well... he'd not be wrong about me," Booker admitted. He then looked at the baby, heart and thoughts racing. "Give her back."

Eleanor looked down upon the baby, and the baby looked back up at her, both pairs of big blue eyes unblinking.

"She's beautiful," the young woman whispered, then looked at Booker. "You remind me of father and mother. I don't know why, but I feel like I know you. Spirry said you were sinful, but..."

"I said give her back!" Booker almost yelled, taking a step forward, arms slightly raised, but Eleanor was untroubled.

She just stared at him, and felt Anna kicking a little again, turning her head and looking at her desperate father, who looked back.

"I said give me back my daughter!" Booker shouted, and lunged at Eleanor. There was a flash of purple, and the lady disappeared, Booker's hands only swiping at the air.

He gasped, stepping back, hands raised, and held his breath. The lady and the baby were both gone. He felt his heart miss every second heartbeat. His emotions bubbled in his chest, and almost felt like he would begin quivering. Had he lost his baby girl? Did she just vanish from thin air? Booker had no idea what happened, and that delayed his mental instability.

Booker slowly turned around, exhausted face beholding the tall lady again, just at the other side of puddle of blood. He wished he could just shoot her.

"...I forgive you," Eleanor finished her last sentence. "Promise me, you'll take good care of this little one. Promise?" she asked, slightly raising the baby so that daughter and father could look at one another better. Booker instead gave the young woman an angry look. But what choice did he have? If he tried to snatch Anna, that young woman...

 _That stupid bitch will just vanish again!_

"I... I promise," Booker said, containing his emotions, but his fists clenched tightly. He did not care how baby-faced Eleanor was, he would still beat her face to a bloody pulp.

The young woman approached him, walking across the puddle of blood, keeping eye contact. Once she reached him, she extended her arms, presenting Anna to him. Booker was a little surprised, but he accepted the gift. Holding Anna in his arms...it was the greatest thing in the world for him.

Eleanor looked around. She saw Robert Lutece lying on the floor, exactly where she killed him in this dream.

"Child..." Booker slightly quivered, holding the baby close to his lowered head. He did not even care about the blood, or the dead body lying in the hallway. Anna was the world to him.

Eleanor slowly exhaled, and smiled. She did not know why, but beholding a father and baby girl was one of the most beautiful things she had ever seen. If only it could be her father and herself... 

It was time to leave them alone. Eleanor teleported out the place, reappearing in the hallway, and walked away. After a while, she heard something echoing down the opposite direction of the hallway. Foot fall. But also...a heart beat? She turned around, hearing the floor thud and even feeling it shake a little.

Eleanor could not see much. The grayscale effect darkened further down the hallway, but the smell of blood and freshly cut meat returned. The footfall and beating heart became louder with every passing second. They soon echoed.

Considering where the sounds echoed, Eleanor could have sworn she would be able to see what made so much noise, yet there was just darkness. But also glowing blood. Blood pooled down the hallway, and then she saw immense bloody footprints appearing, in patterns of four. The rear footprints had no heel, only a forefoot and very long toes, similar to that of an animal. The front footprints were actually handprints, having palms and long fingers. Something invisible was crawling. The prints went towards Booker's room, stepping on Robert and leaving a bloody footprint and five holes in him.

Booker held Anna closely, and he overheard something. A beating heart right behind him. So loudly it echoed down the damn hallway. Anna made noises of distress, kicking in fear and drooling. Booker inhaled slowly, the heart beating behind him becoming louder with every second. He even felt warmth on his back, and the heart was beating so loud, he felt the floor knock. Anna writhed and started crying, the beating heart now so loud it was actually hurting Booker's ears.

"What do you want from me!" Booker yelled, spinning around, and he paused, mouth dropping open. He took a step back, Anna squirming and crying.

Eleanor jogged towards Booker's apartment. Booker suddenly left his apartment and ran up the hallway, bumping into Eleanor, Anna screaming. Booker and Eleanor looked at each other, he was spattered with blood. He actually looked scared.

"Eleanor..." Booker quivered. He hugged Anna tightly, her crying muffled against his chest. "He's a demon."

Eleanor raised an eyebrow.

"A demon? Demons aren't real, Booker, they are metaphors," Eleanor corrected, then saw something grab Robert's corpse, and dragged it into Booker's apartment. A window smashed.

Booker turned around, and Eleanor stepped beside him. A big head emerged from behind the doorway, rather low to the floor, and stared back at Eleanor. The head was gruesome to behold. _He_ had a skull shaped like that on an oversized panther, but it was skinned, not even having cheeks or lips. The meaty skull was wet and sticky with blood, and had a pair of glossy black horns. The eye sockets were empty, but red light faintly flickered out them, blinking illumination of the beast's appearance. Glowing blood was constantly leaking out the eye sockets, nostrils and mouth, patting onto the floor. The beast breathed like a furnace, exhales causing blood to spurt in-between his teeth.

Movement wet and squishy, the monster slowly crawled into the hallway, revealing a skinless, muscle-bound but narrow-waisted body. He wore a glossy black leather greatcoat with a high collar, left unbuttoned down the middle, greatcoat drenched in blood. A pair of fleshy wings adorned his backside, poking through the greatcoat and rubbing along the doorway and then walls and ceiling, smearing blood everywhere. A tapering tail nine feet long dragged along behind him.

"Then what the fuck is that," Booker commented nonchalantly as the monster crawled toward him. Eleanor looked at Booker, not knowing what to say. How the beast's heart beat so loudly, Eleanor did not know, but its extreme loudness and his furnace-sounding breathing were quite unnerving.

His long claws dug into the floor, as if he was ready to pounce, but he came to a stop. His tail moved like a slithering snake, perhaps the equivalent of a dog wagging its tail. He began tapping his clawed fingers against the floor, and repeatedly opened and closed his mouth, teeth clapping together.

"He's playing with superstitions and imagery of our culture. Don't let him get to your head," Eleanor advised.

Booker reached for his holster, but it was empty. "Dammit! It's still on the floor..." Booker cursed, then held Anna tightly with both hands. Obviously, there was no way he could fight Spirry with just his bare hands while protecting a baby. Spirry appeared to be around nine feet tall and probably weighed half a tonne, and his wings, horns and tail made him look larger. He would rip apart a human within seconds.

" _Spirry!_ You told me I gave the baby back! You said multiple times this wasn't about me, or anything you would ever want of me! If you're just learning from me, leave them alone!"

The beast just stared at Eleanor, and stopped clicking his teeth and claws. He just cocked his head, and slowly exhaled a mouthful of blood. By then, a large puddle of blood had formed beneath him. He then began crawling again.

"Booker! Go! I'll hold him off!" Eleanor shouted. Booker nodded, and walked backwards, wondering if he should make any sudden movements. Spirry lifted his gaze, pausing mid-stride.

"To hell with this shit..." Booker turned around and ran away. Spirry grunted, and that was when Eleanor began hurling fireballs at his face, going into a Big Sister combat stance.

Spirry opened his mighty mandibles as far as they could go, howling with such force blood gushed out his mouth and spattered over Eleanor. His howl echoed, and hurt Eleanor's ears, but she kept throwing fiery Plasmids at the motherfucker. He snapped his jaws at one fireball, probably out of reaction.

Within an eyeblink, Spirry charged, his movement possessing the rapidity of a bird, surprising Eleanor. He grabbed her and slammed her into the wall, the back of her head and shoulders shattering the wood.

" _Awooff!_ That hurt..."

Spirry then delivered a huge punch, but Eleanor teleported on the last moment, his fist smashing into the wall. He ripped his arm out, movement ripping a chunk of wood out the wall.

Reappearing up the hallway, opposite of Booker's direction, Eleanor hoped to divert the beast's attention. She threw more fireballs at his backside, and he spun around, wings and tail slapping against the wall, and he was met with a ring of purple telekinesis that blasted him off his hands and feet. Grunting mid-air, he thudded onto his back and wings, writhing and pawing.

Eleanor teleported, reappearing before Spirry's head. She rammed her wrist-mounted needle through his eye socket, stabbing into his brain. Spirry huffed and swiped his claws at her, so she kicked her hips forth and reared, Spirry's claws moving through her hair. Spirry turned around, flapping his wings, swiping his claws, and snapping his jaws wildly. Eleanor evaded all his attacks, reading them automatically, as if she knew what he would do before he did anything.

"Hah hah hah! Oh, heavens, you are quite the reckless fellow," Eleanor remarked as she dodged Spirry's attacks, occasional stabbing her wrist-blade into his face or incoming hands.

Skipping backwards a few times, Eleanor gave Spirry a good kick across the jaw, hearing his jawbone crack, but he did not stop attacking with reckless abandon, ripping streaks in the walls and floor while Eleanor fed him large, explosive fireballs. She teleported behind him, and figured Booker had descended the stairs of this building. She focused, and unleashed another burst of telekinesis, sending Spirry against the wall and cracking the wood.

"Ugh... I'm disappointed. After all the suspense you've created, everything you do ends so quickly..."

Eleanor harassed Spirry with a mix of Plasmids, teleports, and dodges. However, she was getting tired, yet Spirry seemed to have neverending stamina. But, Eleanor was also a hardy demon.

"At this rate, I'll be able to send you a postcard from the beach!" she teased, keeping her distance and dodging Spirry's attacks until her back unexpectedly hit a wall, the stairs nearby. Spirry howled, and charged.

Eleanor teleported out of the beast's way, and he avalanched into the stairwell. Down he fell. Eleanor ran to the railings and looked down, seeing Spirry's wings, arms, legs and tail wiggle as he plummeted.

Not waiting, Eleanor jumped over the railings. She soon saw Spirry at the bottom of the stairwell, having landed hard on his back and dazed. Eleanor landed on Spirry, driving her boot into his sternum and needle into his heart at the same time. The impact caused Spirry to convulse, blood splashing up all over Eleanor, but she screwed her needle deep through his heart.

"Where did you fall? We both know I could outrun you even underwater." She teleported away before Spirry's claws dug into her guts.

Eleanor appeared at the main floor, and looked around. The greyscale and distorted effects were still present., and she could not see Booker anywhere. Oddly enough, everything was quiet, almost silent. Approaching the exit, Eleanor put her hand on the door, and opened it. She looked up, seeing silhouettes of zeppelins dotting the sky, and a big rocket flying down to her...


	36. Chapter 36 - Homeward

Eleanor's eyes shot open, but she sat unflinching despite the noise. Everyone else was either standing nervously or staring out the windows, murmuring about uncertainty. Songbird wailed and something else roared and howled, their heavy flight causing wind turbulence that shook the plane.

Eleanor shot up to her feet and looked around, but could not see Cindy or old Elizabeth. She saw Booker and blue Elizabeth standing together, he leaning to look out a window and the girl behind him, quite afraid. Pinkerton Elizabeth and Mother just sat in their seats, arms crossed, looking grumpy but overall neither seemed to care about anything, Zachary looking side to side and trying to figure out what to do.

Booker turned his head and made eye contact with Eleanor. The two just stared at each other. Eleanor had a feeling he had the same dream as her, but now clearly wasn't the time to talk about that.

Running up the aisle, Eleanor burst into the cockpit. She saw old Elizabeth by Julian, her hand on his shoulder. He didn't seem well, but kept flying nonetheless, guiding the plane as best he could.

Songbird screamed again, and Eleanor saw the buzzard fall past the front of the plane, grappling with a huge, glossy, black, winged monster. The two monsters clawed at each other, the black entity's paws flailing and launching fiery and icy Plasmids recklessly. They fell so close to the plane that the cockpit shook when they fell past it, old Elizabeth bending her knees and holding her head briefly.

"Oh, that was close, heh heh..." Julian remarked weakly.

"It's...Spirry?" Eleanor remarked quietly, mostly to herself, rather confused. Now that the glossy black beast was nearby, Eleanor could sense his thoughts, though they were unclear. She thought about her dream, and how she was able to predict Spirry's attacks, but that Spirry was not that thing outside.

 _If he bonded with me, then..._ _Thoughts from him would come naturally for me to read, but...how can this also work for that thing?_

"This is bad. If Songbird fails for even just a second, Spirry won't need to struggle to destroy this plane!" old Elizabeth warned.

Old Elizabeth placed her hands together then over her chest, quite afraid. Eleanor put a hand on the old gal's shoulder to comfort her.

"We'll get through this, madame," Eleanor assured. Old Elizabeth sighed, shoulders dropping.

Meanwhile, Pinkerton Elizabeth walked towards the cockpit as well, but then she stopped, standing before it and leaning against one of the first seats.

"And how do you know?" the old gal asked, looking at Eleanor.

"I know Spirry, I... I had multiple encounters of him. I just know."

Pinkerton Elizabeth overheard what Eleanor said, and her eyes lowered. She softly crossed her arms and seemed rather upset, but said nothing. She noticed blue Elizabeth making her way up the aisle.

"You had encounters with him, and he didn't kill you?" old Elizabeth asked Eleanor, rather confused and surprised. She slightly frowned. "Who are you?"

"I'm Eleanor Lamb."

"Huh... I've seen so many worlds, and I've never met you before, Ms. Lamb,"

"Well, this time, I suppose it's different." Eleanor heard someone step into the cockpit.

"Songbird can rip zeppelins apart. I'm surprised he hasn't pulled that thing to pieces already," blue Elizabeth somewhat complained, jogging into the cockpit and looking for Songbird, Booker stepping in after her.

"Spirry's exoskeleton is as hard as stone. Not even Songbird could get through that. I'm surprised he's lasted as long as he did in this world," old Elizabeth remarked. Her younger counterpart looked a bit disappointed. Something stronger than Songbird was not a pleasant thought.

"Convenient for him, then..." Booker mumbled, then everyone gasped as they saw the black entity flying straight towards the plane, mouth agape, jaw extended, howling. "Oh, shit!"

Julian steered the plane acutely, everyone leaning and then skittering to the side, the Vox troops rather clumsily rolling into the wall. One of the Beasts' helms smacking into a window and cracking it. Pinkerton Elizabeth lost balance and fell on her little ass.

Screaming, Songbird rammed into the side of the black entity, and the two fell below sight just as the plane flew past them. Once the plane's wings became horizontal, the passengers lifted their heads, feeling better.

"Y'know, zeppelins don't make us fly into walls..." Daisy somewhat grumbled.

Back in the cockpit, old Elizabeth fixed her hair and looked around. Songbird's wails became distant.

"Now that...was close..." Sinclair chuckled, then groaned. Eleanor noticed he gradually leaned over, barely keeping his grip. He clearly struggled to stay awake and alive, and blood soaked even his pants.

"It was. But, Sinclair, how are you feeling?" Eleanor asked.

"Honestly...pretty bad. I don't know if I can make it, kid..."

"Can you still get us to Rapture?" Booker asked nonchalantly.

"I bet I can."

"I bet you will," Booker agreed, and then Songbird's wail reverberated in the skies yet again.

Blue Elizabeth leaned over the control panel, looking for the birdy, but could not see him.

"Where is he? I hope he's okay..."

Outside, the black entity and his mechanical foe exchanged tackles, but they also made use of dodging. The monster frequently cast huge masses of Plasmids that lit up the sky, though Songbird dodged most of them, always avoiding the icy ones first. His metal hull withstood the flaming ones well enough, the black entity keeping his distance for now.

Swerving around a large mass of freezing, Songbird dove into the black entity's front, and the two fell, exchanging paws. The monster's claws and teeth scraped against Songbird's hull, actually causing sparks. Songbird's mighty hands pummeled the beast, but no matter how hard he tried, Songbird simply could not shatter the fish-faced fucker's stony body.

Songbird always kept himself between the plane and the monster, even if it meant being hit by Plasmids. He occasionally looked back at the plane, doing his best to guide the black entity away from Elizabeth. Once the monster looked at the plane, Songbird screamed, and charged.

The black entity spun around as Songbird dove at him, narrowly avoiding his charge. The monster then flew upward while hurling two handfuls of Old Man Winter. Songbird flipped, dodging the Plasmids which exploded mid-air, and then spun around and charged his glossy foe.

Forming Tears that remained affixed to his palms, each of the black entity's hands unleashed a mechanical length. Just as Songbird extended his clawed hands, in the instance of smashing into the black entity, he whipped the mechanical lengths around Songbird's arms, then swerved underneath him.

As Songbird past the black entity, the mechanical lengths extended, the whiplash pulling Songbird's arms down and back, causing him to flip forwards. Causing the black chains to retract and so pull him into Songbird, the black entity ended up latching onto Songbird's back, pushing his wings together and preventing him from flying. They both plummeted.

While falling, Songbird turned around as best he could, grabbing onto the black entity's right leg with both hands, just as the monster slammed an armful of Old Man Winter into Songbird's back. Songbird twisted, wanting to just snap the leg, but his giant mechanical paws failed to crack the monster's exoskeleton.

Songbird felt a rush of coldness as Old Man Winter froze his torso and the base of his wings. The black entity's mechanical lengths unraveled and slid back into his hands, then he hopped off Songbird. Immediately, the black entity felt whiplash from his leg. Songbird kept holding onto his leg, refusing to let go. The monster flapped his wings, but Songbird's icebound body was too heavy. They promptly splashed into the ocean.

Bubbles rose everywhere, but even while he sank, Songbird did not let go of the monster's leg. The black entity writhed, instinctively swimming like a snake, but he could not wiggle out Songbird's grasp. A Tear formed on the monster's paw and a mechanical length shot up through the water's surface, an attempt to find something to grab, but there was nothing, just water. Turning around, the black entity extended his neck and began biting and clawing at Songbird. Even as they disappeared into the dark depths, Songbird did not let go.

Back in the plane, blue Elizabeth kept staring out the windshield. By now, though, the plane past the duelling monsters by quite a bit.

"I can't see or hear Songbird anymore... I hope he's okay," she said.

"How much longer till this Rapture place?" Booker asked.

"'Bout an hour. We'll make it," Julian replied rather quietly, Eleanor checking on him.

"Are you alright, mister? I'll try to see if I can get something to help you," blue Elizabeth said, then left the cockpit, Pinkerton Elizabeth sitting down to let her pass. After the two made eye contact, the young Elizabeth began rummaging around the plane. As usual, the Vox were mostly indifferent to her, but the Zealot seemed to be looking at her once in a while.

With the action over for now, most of the passengers still standing went back to sitting down, but many were still on the edge of their seats. Eleanor stayed with Sinclair to keep him company, but also because she didn't want to see Mother. It began raining, the pattering of raindrops a little soothing.

"Huh...I wonder where Cindy sneaked off to?" Eleanor asked.

"She was always good at snooping and hiding, heh heh..." Julian mumbled.

Soon, blue Elizabeth scuttled back to the cockpit, brandishing a makeshift med kit.

"I'm back!" she chirped, "Here, let me help you out..." she continued, opening her med kit to start work.

"Nah, don't worry about me, kid, I'm about to pass away pretty soon. You keep it for yourself," Julian said.

"Please, let me help you... It's the least I could do."

Eleanor straightened her back with a frown, "He's coming..."

"Who?" young Elizabeth asked, looking up at Eleanor.

Explosions sounded at the back of the plane and around the plane. The windows revealed that some large fireballs visibly flew after the plane, exploding mid-air, but some had inevitably struck the plane. The smell of fire and smoke came, and the lights flickered. Banging and clanking came next, and the plane tilted backwards a bit, engines roaring, everyone feeling their guts rise. Embers, flames and smoke spewed out the sides of the plane, visible through the windows. It was not long until fire and smoke started traveling up the hull, and many began coughing.

"This thing's on fire!" Daisy warned, everyone looking at the Fireman.

"I did not use any Vigors!" he assured.

Extreme scraping sounded, and then, the top of the back of the plane began ripping open. Wind, fire, smoke, embers, and rain flurried in. Zachary hurled Old Man Winter, sealing the roof with ice. He ran down the aisle and tossed more Old Man Winters at other burning parts of the plane, temporarily fixing the holes. Then this big, black, head broke through the ice, extending into the plane, howling, neck and face dripping with water, eyes beaming red. This startled Zachary so much he fell on his ass.

"Ohh _shhhit_!"

"Scary! Scary! Scary!" Cindy cried, crawling over the seats.

The black entity's weight caused the plane to slow down and tilt back farther, creating a slope, everyone leaning against the seats or holding onto them for stabilization.

"Keep crawling!" Zachary yelled at Cindy, then she fell to the bottom of the seat.

Eleanor teleported to Cindy's seat, shielding her. Peculiarly, the black entity stared at Eleanor, but did nothing. Even when Eleanor cast an Electrobolt at the monster, it did nothing.

The plane continued tilting backwards, Zachary sliding towards the monster's dripping jaws, the beast just patiently waiting for its prey to roll in. Zachary threw Old Man Winter into its maw, filling its mouth and throat with ice. The monster reared, hitting its head on the roof, looking rather surprised.

Eleanor used her telekinesis to help Zachary up, then he stood behind a seat to have something to lean on. Everyone got their guns ready, as awkward as it was to shoot while leaning against a seat, but there was nothing else to do.

The Elizabeths withdrew their handguns, Booker unslung his Burstgun, Zachary unslung his sniper rifle, Daisy lifted her carbine, and the Zealot...brandished his sword. They all opened fire. The Vox Beasts would not use their explosives inside a plane, so wielded their shotguns.

"Ughh! I want to burn him, but I don't want to burn everyone else down!" the Fireman exclaimed angrily, not sure what to do.

Bullets whizzed, ricocheting off the monster's glossy face and also cracking the ice, some popping holes in the charred ceiling. With a growl, the black entity locked its jaws, crushing the ice in its mouth. It then regurgitated the rest of the ice whilst showered by bullets.

Extending his head, the monster bit the closest target, a Beast, around the head and shoulders. The black entity lifted its head and thrashed its armoured lunch side to side, the Beast kicking. Everyone fired carefully, but their bullets either shattered or ricocheted from the black entity's exoskeleton. Zachary and Eleanor cast Shock Jockey at the damn thing, but not even Plasmids did anything.

"He's troi'n ta eat Greg!" one of the Vox Beasts exclaimed, the Zealot unleashing Murderous Crows, but they didn't really do anything, even as they pecked at the monster's eyes.

"Dammit! His skin's too strong!" Daisy shouted, reloading her carbine.

"Ughh! You ain't gonna believe how bad his breath his!" the Beast in the monster's mouth exclaimed, an African American. He grabbed the monster's teeth to prevent being swallowed.

The two other Vox Beasts leapt forth, each grabbing their friend's legs, trying to pull him out the monster's mouth. They had to lean backwards to prevent sliding down the sloped aisle.

While the Beasts and the black entity played tug o' war, Zachary aimed his sniper rifle, and fired. The high-powered bullet hit the beast in its right eye, which cracked like glass. Surprisingly, the monster did not let go, even as blood leaked out the hole in its cracked eye. The Fireman and Daisy joined in the tug o' war, trying to free their comrade since nothing else was working. The Zealot teleported atop the monster's neck, mounting it and hacking away at the head, Murderous Crows dissipating.

Eleanor used her psychokinesis to grasp the monster's jaw, trying to wrench it open. No easy task, but neither side gave up.

"C'mon, get an automaton atop the ship with me!" Pinkerton Elizabeth yelled at her counterpart. She then looked at old Elizabeth. "You too!"

"I can't!"

"Why the hell not!?"

"I, I...when I formed a Tear to save you all from falling, that was the last of my powers. They don't work anymore," old Elizabeth explained, the Pinkerton rolling her eyes.

"Then try harder!"

"I am trying!"

Atop either of the plane's wings, a Gun Automaton was summoned. Both automatons opened fire at the monster's lower back and wings, giving it a little more to worry about. The back third of the plane was quite damaged, embers and smoke flowing out like crazy, tail flaming.

The black entity had clutched the back of the plane, but the onslaught of so many attacks certainly debilitated its animalistic thinking. It began writhing backwards, movement causing the hull to screech and creak.

"Don't let him take Greg!" Daisy yelled.

Zachary stopped shooting his rifle, and threw another Old Man Winter at the monster, freezing its neck against the roof. He and Booker jumped over seats until they were at either side of the Beast, grabbing the sides of his armour and joining the tug o' war.

Sofia just sat in her seat, having a smoke, unsure of what to do yet not really caring, either. She heard something move and looked down, seeing Cindy crawling on the floor. The two made eye contact, and paused.

"Oh, hi! How'd you think the upside-down house is now?" Cindy asked. Sofia raised an eyebrow, but said nothing.

Julian Sinclair looked back, seeing that everyone struggled with the black beast. He looked outside, clearly seeing the ocean below.

"I'll try to shake him off before he drags us into the ocean!" he shouted, steering sharply to the side. Everyone rolled over, Sofia and Cindy going across the aisle and Eleanor's head hitting a window.

"Oof!" Cindy exclaimed, rubbing her head. "Are you alright, Eleanor?"

"Yes, Cindy, I'm fine. How about you?"

"Uh-huh."

The Vox and Bookers kept holding onto their friend, even as they piled up against the wall. The Zealot managed to stay mounted atop the monster's neck as if a cowboy.

"This'll get that big boy off!" Sinclair yelled, sharply turning to the other side.

Everyone rolled over again, Vox and Bookers piling against the other side of the plane, neither they nor the monster letting go of the Vox Beast. The Zealot remained atop the black entity's neck, though.

"Ow! All this thrashing can't be good for my poor old joints..." old Elizabeth croaked.

The awkward angle, and continuous fire of the Gun Automatons, caused the black entity to lose grip. One set of claws slipped out the plane, then its other hand clawed down the hull. The monster grunted, then its other hand ripped out the hull.

The Zealot felt the monster's head suddenly yank backwards, the ice Zachary froze in that area shattering and sending shards everywhere, causing him to fall off. Everyone else kept grasping Greg, rising with him as the monster jerked upwards. With a hiss, the monster disappeared, leaving behind Greg and a rather big hole in the plane. Everyone who had been holding Greg fell to the floor with him.

"Fffeh, clumsy children..." Sofia scoffed, then took a mouthful of nicotine.

Engines roaring, rear end on fire, Sinclair did what he could to increase altitude and speed, but he was rather missing one-fourth of plane. The Gun Automatons continued firing at the monster as it plummeted into the waters. Distance from it increased like crazy, for now. The Gun Automatons phased out of reality.

Unsurprisingly, considering its rather aquatic face, the black entity was quite a good swimming. It used its torso similarly to dolphins, tail wriggling like an eel, paddling with its wings, kicking its legs, and stroking with its arms. Raising its head out the water, it took a big inhale, filling its hollow interior with air to remain buoyant.

Far behind, a familiar wail echoed, red light beaming upward faraway. Although not designed for swimming, Songbird could swim with his limbs and wings, sort of. He constantly moved as fast as he could, converting his rapidity from flying to swimming. Despite rabid thrashing and rather unprofessional strokes, Songbird managed to create enough speed to avoid sinking. However, becoming airborne directly from water was a whole new story, something he could not do. All he could do was continue swimming along the waves...

The black entity's swimming allowed it to move rather quickly. Like Songbird, the monster could not actually jump out the water and fly in an instance. Instead, whenever an arm raised during stroking, it threw Old Man Winter. The Plasmids hit the water and created icy platforms, growing larger with consecutive Plasmids. Once large enough, the black entity climbed atop the little island of ice. Wings vibrating up and down, the monster jumped and took flight.

Back in the plane, everyone caught their breath and took a break. Zachary went to work with Old Man Winter, resorting to freezing the back third of the plane to prevent the flames from spreading.

"That should do it, for now. Sofia! You okay?"

The younger Elizabeths each conjured an ammo pile, everyone helping themselves, Booker drinking a vial of Salts.

Eleanor walked into the cockpit.

"Julian, are you alright?"

"I'm doing good enough, kid. We're almost there."

"Aw, shit. If Songbird doesn't come back, we'll have no way to get off this plane," Pinkerton Elizabeth warned.

"I'll land her on the waters gently. Or try..."

"You better do it right, then," Booker remarked from the aisle.

"Dammit! He's coming again!" Eleanor warned.

"What? He's coming back again!?" Zachary exclaimed down the plane.

"Get ready!" Daisy cautioned, the Vox getting their firearms ready.

Everyone in the aisle stared at the ceiling nervously. Another round of explosive fireballs went after the plane, exploding outside the windows. The shaking broke the plane's lighting.

"Dammit! I don't think this plane can last another round of him!" Pinkerton Elizabeth cried.

"Why isn't Songbird here yet?" young Elizabeth whined, feeling quite helpless.

More fireballs exploded around the back of the plane. Further damage broke open new holes, Zachary sealing them with more icy Plasmids.

"Catch!" Pinkerton Elizabeth said, throwing Zachary a vial of Salts.

"Much obliged!" He drank it down, and continued freezing holes closed. More and more cracks and openings appeared, windows shattering. Soon, almost half the ship was held together with ice.

Unfortunately, fireballs struck the engines, too, and the wings began smouldering. It was only a matter of time before the engines exploded or the wings broke.

"Goddammit! Is there anything we can do!?" Booker exclaimed.

"I'll try this!" young Elizabeth stated, using her Tear powers to revert an engine back to its original form. A second later, a fireball hit the engine and it was back on fire again. "Well, that didn't work..."

"This plane isn't gonna last much longer..." Zachary remarked, young and old Elizabeth grasping their own upper arms and looking up nervously.

Everyone was on edge, but the monster did not yet tackle into the plane.

"Wait... Why didn't I think of this sooner?" Eleanor whispered to herself. "I have an idea!" Half the passengers looked at her. She closed her eyes and concentrated. After a flash of purple, she was gone.

The black entity flew after the plane, closing in, both hands blazing with Devil's Kiss. It was about to attack the plane, but then grunted. Looking up, it wondered what happened. Plasmids deactivating, the monster raised its arms overhead, then positioned them before its face. It was now holding Eleanor, who left her limbs limp. Legs swaying, drizzling with rain, Eleanor stared blankly, looking like a doll.

Eleanor pointed to the side. Off in the dark horizon, a bright white light shone, somewhere in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean?

"Rapture, now."

Tilting its wings, the monster swerved, and flew off. It did not bother the plane anymore.

Inside, the Bookers and Elizabeths watched through the remaining windows, seeing the black entity fly off with Eleanor.

"He's...not killing her?" Daisy asked.

"And he's gone. Good," Booker said, then walked down the aisle. "Hey! Are we gonna make it or what?"

An engine exploded. Surprisingly, it was the one Elizabeth conjured from the past. The plane continued flying, but Booker felt his stomach lift as the plane slightly slanted.

Julian kept quiet for a few seconds.

"Hey, pal, ya hear me?"

With a groan and grimace, Julian turned his head.

"Prepare for emergency landing."


	37. Chapter 37 - There's always a lighthouse

"Where did Eleanor go?" Cindy asked rather lately, popping her head out from cover. "Did you see her?" she asked the Big Daddy doll. He did not reply.

"Wait, we're crashing?" young Elizabeth squeaked as the plane tilted further down. The Vox looked around nervously. The other engine exploded.

"Yup. We're crashing," the Pinkerton remarked nonchalantly.

Elizabeth sharply inhaled through clenched teeth. "Songbird… Where's Songbird?"

"Not here, obviously. Guess our plan backfired," Pinkerton Elizabeth mumbled. She lit a cigarette despite hand tremors.

The ice keeping the plane together was melting, so Zachary gave the plane another round of Old Man Winter, actually able to see through the ice in some parts. The plane was literally held together by ice.

Nevertheless, smoke, flames, and embers flurried out the plane and soon inside as well. Cindy started crying, old Elizabeth holding her.

"Hang in there, sweetie!"

"Dammit! Work!" blue Elizabeth whined, trying to form a Tear on one of the engines, to revert it back in the past, but it wasn't working.

Pinkerton Elizabeth began the transposition for a portion of the plane's hull. The hull became like greyscale and had an aura. Once it went away, the plane's hull reverted to an icy but fixed form, but the flames kept growing anyways, eating up the new material.

"There! Got it!" One engine was reverted to the past, roaring with vitality. Though, the flames along the wing went into the engine anyways and it was back on fire in no time.

"Can't you help us out!?" the Pinkerton bitched at her older counterpart.

"I'm trying! It still isn't working!"

Zachary continued freezing the plane's flaming parts, the younger Elizabeths reverted parts of the plane to their past form, and most of the others did what they could to douse the flames. Working together, the plane's flight prolonged, bit by bit, but it never gained altitude.

Pinkerton Elizabeth ran into the cockpit, seeing the Rapture Lighthouse off in the distance. Sinclair was leaning over the controls. Zachary came and grabbed Sinclair, pulling him back, Julian groaning. His hands shook and bled. He would not last much longer.

"You alive?" Zachary asked.

"Sort of… Just a little more, we're almost there…"

Zachary and the Pinkerton looked at each other. Elizabeth had a sad face for Julian, but it disappeared. She slowly exhaled a mouthful of nicotine.

"So...back to Rapture. Try not to kill me this time, okay?"

"Yeah. Gotcha."

"I'll still fly her as best I can! Ya'll get a Mae West and get ready!" Sinclair weakly yelled, shaking his head and grasping the controls tightly.

"A Mae West?" Booker asked from down the aisle.

"He means lifejacket, they're under the seats," Pinkerton Elizabeth answered, getting one for herself. Everyone else followed suite. Zachary helped Cindy with hers, then checked on Sofia and old Elizabeth.

"How does this work?" the Fireman asked, trying to fit the thing over his helm, but then his boilers burst the device. He and the Beasts resorted to carrying a life vest under each arm.

Daisy looked out a window, seeing more and more of the ocean rising.

"Aw, shit!" she cursed. "Water better not be too cold..."

Everyone braced themselves, except the Zealot. The smoke and flames intensified. Zachary waved his arm, wanting to cast Old Man Winter, but he ran out of EVE.

The past-reverted engine exploded. The plane returned to gliding, then falling, tilting downward, everyone leaning on seats. Old Elizabeth and Cindy clutched each other.

Julian Sinclair groaned angrily, using the last of his strength to guide the plane. And then, baptism.

Eleanor stood under the rain at the steps of Rapture Lighthouse, though the black entity was nowhere in sight. She could do nothing as the plane crashed, striking the waters violently. Its hull imploded, metal creaking and sizzling, quenched flaming steel steaming and smoking. Eleanor didn't wait. She took her shoes and socks off, and dove into the water. She writhed through the waters like a dolphin.

The Zealot appeared atop the sinking, flaming plane, coughing while his Murderous Crows fluttered around him. He teleported off the plane, reappearing at the stairs of the Rapture Lighthouse. He turned to face the sinking plane, a few crows perching on the railings.

The side of the plane exploded, then, one at a time, the three Beasts jumped out the hole, their rocket launchers smoking. The armoured men plopped into the water, life vests around their arms, and the plane sinking behind them. Daisy, the Fireman, the Elizabeths, Cindy and Booker swam out the hole, avoiding the flames around them.

"Ahh! God! It's _cold!_ " the Fireman yelled, shivering in his sizzling armour. He actually swam into flames to stay warm!

"Cold! Cold! Cold! _Cold!_ " Cindy squeaked, dog paddling ineffectively.

"Keep kicking!" old Elizabeth encouraged, swimming with Cindy and holding her up.

Although four Vox troops wore heavy armour, their helms developed air pockets in the tops, making them a little more buoyant. They struggled to stay afloat even with life vests, but managed. The waves were not too bad.

"Eleanor! Wrong way!" Cindy cried once she saw Eleanor swimming towards the plane.

"Cindy! I'll be back!" Taking a deep breath, Eleanor dove, swimming after the sinking plane. Swimming into the plane, she looked around, but could not see Zachary, Mother, or Sinclair. She felt the top of the plane hit her head, and she sank with the plane.

Swimming to the cockpit, Eleanor produced a small electric current amidst her fingers to form light. She saw Julian, buckled to his seat, hands still gripped on the controls. He wasn't moving. Eleanor's heart sank. Julian Sinclair had a peaceful face in death, satisfied that he had finished his last flight.

 _He probably died from impact… But I can't help him now._

Eleanor placed her hand on Julian's shoulder. She then wriggled out the cockpit then swam out the plane. While a second plane sunk toward Rapture, she swam to the steps of the lighthouse.

"Damn, this is cold…" she grumbled as she got out the water. She looked up, seeing the skyborne machine far above the lighthouse. They swayed on their own.

"Eleanor!" Cindy exclaimed, jumping into Eleanor, who caught the girl mid-air while kneeling. She was not wearing her life vest anymore.

"We made it Eleanor! We made it!"

"Yes! We did!" Eleanor laughed, putting Cindy down. It was rare for her to laugh, how could she not for the triumphant child? Though, the thought of Julian gave her a heavy heart.

"Little Daddy knew you'd come!" Cindy lifted the Big Daddy doll, giving him a little shake.

"He's smart, isn't he?" Eleanor said. Cindy grinned.

"You're alive? Good. I thought that monster ate you or something," Zachary said while walking to the scene, also not wearing his life vest anymore. Everyone else seemed to be inside the lighthouse. He kept looking up. "Where's that thing, anyways?"

"Gone. I take it everyone's inside? Let's go in, get warm. I'll explain more in there." Eleanor grabbed her socks and shoes.

Cindy skipped along with Eleanor, and the three entered the lighthouse. Eleanor paused halfway through the doorway. Cindy spun around to see what was wrong, but Zachary kept walking.

"What is it?"

"I'm...home…"

Memories came. The glass tunnels, the leaking ceilings, puddles, Splicers, vendors, the Gatherer's garden song, that one gunshot she heard as a child…

 _Wait, something's wrong… I should have all the memories of the citizens of Rapture… Hold on. I did not know Ó Gallachóir, even though his brother went to Rapture...I would have had his brother's memories, but… Where are all those memories?_

Eleanor stopped thinking, and just put her socks and shoes on. She looked around, feeling empty. She did not know why, but home felt like a place she had never seen before. The round interior seemed alright, though the main light at the ceiling occasionally flickered. Everyone had tossed their life vests nearby. There was no working lighting down the stairs, either. All of this alluded to something ominous.

"Let's go down the stairs, Eleanor!" Cindy chirped, snapping Eleanor out of her thoughts. Cindy chuckled. "Don't worry, Eleanor! Wanna bet who finds Mr. B first?"

For the first time in a long time, Eleanor felt afraid. She did not want to go into Rapture. The fear of the unknown gripped her guts. The sounds of rain echoing against the ocean soothed her.

 _I have to do this. One more time..._

The shivering Elizabeths turned around to see Zachary and the two girls.

"Y-you m-m-made it," Pinkerton Elizabeth stammered. Undoubtedly, a skirt was not the best thing to wear to keep warm. Poor legs. "Close the door quick, it's cold!" Zachary shut the door.

Everyone stood nearby the Fireman to keep warm, he leaning against the railings. He even formed two flaming masses to provide extra heat. Zachary, Booker and Eleanor formed their own minor flames to create even more heat and light. Sofia was alone with her thoughts, completely ignoring Eleanor.

"Did you see Julian?" young Elizabeth asked.

"He didn't make it," Eleanor answered.

"He did well," Booker remarked.

"Is that big thing gone?" Daisy asked, squeezing water out her hair.

"F-for n-n- _nnn_ ow. After he p-put me d-d-down, he s-s-swam down to Rapture," Eleanor stammered, hearing a Beast snicker. Eleanor felt herself blush a little. But, she shrugged off the embarrassment easily enough. Old Elizabeth stared at her, concerned, but said nothing.

"He can swim? Great… How are we going to get through Rapture with something like him after us? I bet he won't have to try hard to break the glass," the Pinkerton remarked.

"I...communicated with him once we made eye contact. It wasn't easy, but he listened. For now..." Everyone looked at Eleanor, who now controlled herself, and her speech.

"He...listened to you?" young Elizabeth asked, surprised. Eleanor nodded.

"Huh. Speak of the devil," Zachary remarked.

"You couldn't have done that sooner?" Booker grumbled, young Elizabeth putting a hand on his shoulder to calm him down.

"I… Yes, I was rather late… I just wasn't thinking as efficiently as I normally would."

"Hm. So he really did bond with you," old Elizabeth said, rather curious.

"Yes, but...but…" Eleanor hesitated, then looked at Booker. "Booker! Did you...have a dream? I was in your dream, wasn't I?"

Booker kept quiet for a couple seconds. The lighting flickered.

"Yeah."

"And see Spirry you did," Eleanor stated, intending to cross her arms, but then felt the heat of her active Plasmid. "What did he look like?"

"He's a demon. A big, muscular, skinless demon. No eyes, bleeds everywhere."

Eleanor then looked at old Elizabeth.

"Do you remember Spirry looking like that?"

"No. He was always a huge black monster with wings."

Pinkerton Elizabeth seemed a bit confused. Eleanor looked at her.

"And the Spirry I saw...white. He was white, with a snake-like face. Had a glass covering over his stomach."

"So...three different Spirrys. But...how...how is that possible?" Eleanor asked herself, thinking deeply. Yet, no answers came to her mind.

Pinkerton Elizabeth and old Elizabeth seemed quite disheartened.

"So there's more than one Spirry. Guess I shouldn't be surprised. There's probably a billion Spirrys. That...complicates things," the Pinkerton said, crossing her arms.

Considering everything they saw, the Vox did not bother questioning anything. Craziness was now normal.

"Well, ain't nothin' stopping me from taking every one of him out," Booker assured.

"Yeah. Exactly what I was thinkin'," Daisy agreed. "If we can't kill the black Spirry, then taking one of his other heads'll be a good start."

"Before we do that, Booker...what happened in your dream after you left the building?" Eleanor asked.

Static and tuning returned, Booker wincing from the pain. Blood left his nose. Zachary's and Eleanor's nose also bled. They deactivated their flames, the Bookers rubbing their noses at the same time, Eleanor wiping hers with her sleeve.

"I… I don't remember. I saw zeppelins. Odd. I'm pretty sure Columbia didn't exist when…"

"When you sold your girl," the Pinkerton finished rather grumpily. The vein in Booker's forehead bulged. The Vox looked at Booker, the Zealot eyeing the tattoo on his hand.

"I didn't sell her!" Booker yelled, his hands engulfing with Devil's Kiss. He caused his Vigors to dissipate. He huffed, head and shoulders dropping. "Eleanor took her! Well, then gave her back, and... I… I ran away from him. I don't remember what happened afterwards."

Eleanor almost found it funny that Booker did not admit she beat him up in some other world. Nevertheless, Eleanor's heart sank upon thinking about Spirry's words when she first encountered him.

"Spirry took her…"

"What?" Booker demanded, young Elizabeth looking up at him nervously.

"I had this dream before, and in it… Spirry coerced me to take your baby, as you saw me do. He did something to me. Made me lose my mind. Once I recovered, I gave the baby back to you. He threatened that if I didn't take the baby, he would do it himself…"

Booker paused, and did not even feel his next heartbeat. He thought heavily.

"No, wait… This… This doesn't make any sense…" Booker gave up on thinking. He turned around and put his hands on the railings. Young Elizabeth went to him, unsure if she should comfort him or not. Booker turned his head. "You couldn't have been alive twenty years ago. Even if you were, you don't even come from my world, right?" Booker looked at blue Elizabeth, who nodded with uncertainty. Booker looked back at Eleanor. "How… How were you even there?"

Eleanor shrugged. She looked at Mother, who seemed alone in her thoughts. _Hunh, Mother's awfully quiet. Probably doesn't know what to do now that she knows no one will listen to her… Ha!_

"I think I know," Pinkerton Elizabeth said, breaking the silence. Everyone looked at her. "When I worked with Michael, he mentioned something about new Tears that could connect to the past, present, and future, all at the same time. I have a feeling Spirry succeeded, at least once."

"If he could do that… Spirry could literally do anything he wants," young Elizabeth warned.

"Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds…" old Elizabeth whispered, quoting the Bhagavad Gita. She saw Cindy scuttle to the wall, playing with her toy.

"Well, I guess that makes him a god," Zachary remarked, then noticed Pinkerton Elizabeth kept looking at her other young counterpart. If this Booker's daughter was stolen as a baby, then this young Elizabeth…

"Elizabeth, can you now tell me what happened to Ellie?" Zachary asked.

The Pinkerton looked back, then her eyes and head lowered.

"After the boy died, and she realized she couldn't bring him back… I tried to stop her, but the Big Daddy… Ellie went out of Rapture to find her imaginary dragon friend. Blamed him for betraying her. Said she would find him in the abyss."

Zachary's head dropped. He sighed.

"Not even a Little Sister could survive miles down a fault. She actually believed her imaginary friends were real… That poor child…"

The listeners gave Zachary a few seconds of silence.

"Booker, I'm sorry. But...we better get moving. I don't think we should delay," the Pinkerton said.

"Yeah… Let's skin us this demon," Daisy said.

"Hell yeah!" the African-American Beast commented.

Everyone went down the stairs. The pretty symbolism on the walls soon came, accompanied by an instrumental version of La Mer, the iconic song of Rapture. Pinkerton Elizabeth found herself humming to the tune. Though, the lighting did not activate, even when they neared the end of the stairs. Everyone spread apart, looking around.

"It's dark! Can you even see, Little Daddy?" Cindy spoke.

Eleanor felt her foot hit something. She knelt, hand forming a little flame. Neatly folded on the floor, next to the wall, was a Big Sister suit, a bloodied handheld radio, and a recording atop the garb. Eleanor raised an eyebrow.

"Is that your suit?" Mother asked, even she a bit surprised.

How did this get here all the way from that church in Ireland? Eleanor thought to herself, but did not have an answer.

Eleanor picked up the audio diary, and hit play. The mechanisms whirred to life. Everyone stopped looking around and paid attention to Eleanor, the Bookers and Fireman activating their fiery powers to provide illumination.

"Dat sounded loik a voxophone," one of the Beasts commented.

Eleanor stood up to listen to the audio diary.

"As you have noticed," the voice was familiarly deep and gurgly, "one of your unbaptized sisters was kind enough to bring your suit, and leave you this...sound-repeater. Do you recall the newspaper Ms. Tenenbaum read? Well, it was not long until Her Majesty's Naval Service got involved. Someone told the British military...what would happen. They tried to stop me. Unfortunately for them, well...the marines learned the hard way, just like the Schutzstaffel twenty years ago. Pick up the radio, set it to channel three. After that, well, maybe we can end all of this." The recording ended.

"He knew exactly when I would arrive?" Eleanor whispered to herself, the Elizabeths having similar thoughts.

"Is he always a few steps ahead of us?" old Elizabeth commented.

"Hunh… So Spirry is here..." Booker said.

"Surprised?" the Pinkerton remarked. "I knew we had to go back to Rapture."

"And then what?" Zachary asked.

"Actually, I don't remember what exactly…"

"Well, that's great," Booker remarked sarcastically.

"Consider everything a constant leap of faith. We're still in the jump."

Elizabeth's words made Eleanor think about her medallions.

"Though, without a bathysphere…" Pinkerton Elizabeth went to the opening at the centre of the floor. A Tear formed far down in the water, visible only because it glowed. "Oh? A Tear. I didn't open that…"

A meaty skull the size of a bathysphere arose, splashing water everywhere. The fleshy skull's eyes shone yellow, and then the skull let out a blood curdling, gurgly screech, blood gushing out its mouth. Eleanor spun around, dropping the radio.

"Oh, shit! What the fuck!" Zachary yelled, shielding Sofia.

"Scary monster again!" Cindy squeaked, running away.

Those with weapons raised them, the Beasts withdrawing shotguns, the Elizabeths their pistols, Zachary his sniper rifle, Booker his Burstgun, Daisy her carbine. Gunfire powerfully reverberated in the lighthouse, Cindy jumping from fright and covering her ears, dropping her doll. Eleanor and the Fireman began hurling fireballs, the Zealot unleashing Murderous Crows.

"What little flesh you have left will be black!" the Fireman yelled, charging the skull and flailing his gauntlets while blasting Devil's Kiss point-blank. His strikes did not do much against so big a foe. The skull faced him, catching the Fireman with its jaws. Chewing on a burning suit of armour did not go well, the skull's tongue and gums sizzling while the Fireman threw Devil's Kill down its throat. The monster spat the Fireman out.

Peppered with gunfire, scorched from flames, and gnawed by crows, the skull reared, extending upwards, revealing it had a neck rising from the waters yet had no shoulders. Roaring, the skull slammed itself down repeatedly, headbutting two Beasts and the Fireman into the floor, but the others manages to skip away. It then flailed its head sideways, knocking the Bookers, the Beast, Daisy, and the Pinkerton down, but Eleanor and the Zealot teleported out of the way. Old Elizabeth, Cindy and Sofia skipped backwards to keep their distance, making sure to stay away from the skull's beaming eyes.

The Bookers and Daisy fired their guns while lying on their backs. The Zealot reappeared above the skull, gripping his sword by its handle and blade. Ramming it into the skull's forehead, the Zealot slid down the monster's face while his sword cut down it, leaving a nasty opening.

"Feel the blade, hellspawn!" the Zealot shouted, launching his feet into the skull's nose to somewhat sit in it. Everyone who had fallen had picked themselves up and continued the fight.

"Jeez! Don't just get in the way!" Booker yelled while reloading his Burstgun.

The Zealot lunged his arm into the skull's eye socket, releasing his Murderous Crows inside. The skull groaned, shaking itself to and fro, throwing the Zealot off itself and he hit the wall, but his crows feasted on its brains. Zealot out of the way, the gunfire maximised again. The Fireman, Booker and Zachary tossed Devil's Kiss while Eleanor hurled fireballs, the constant bombardment at such close range gradually ripping the skull open.

Overwhelmed by the assault, the skull growled, then pulled itself into the water. After a big splash, the skull disappeared, leaving behind only bubbles.

"He gone?" a Beast asked.

"I'd say he ain't gone just yet," Daisy remarked, reloading her carbine, and sure enough, the monster burst out the water, splashing water everywhere again.

The gunfire commenced, and the skull recklessly snapped its jaws in all directions while falling itself. The skull struck the walls and floor, sometimes knocking down the armoured Vox, but the others dodged the monster.

"There!" blue Elizabeth exclaimed, summoning a Gun Automaton in the corner, which promptly joined the fight.

The skull slammed its head down, the dragged it along in a curve, knocking down the Vox and Bookers in one swing. It stopped before blue Elizabeth, the Pinkerton firing her revolver at the monster.

"Booker!" blue Elizabeth cried as the monster's jaws opened. She extended her arms, dropping her pistol from fright, feeling the monster's breath blowing through her hair and clothes.

" _ELIZABETH!_ " Booker screamed as he picked himself up, Elizabeth ending up in the monster's mouth.

Booker cast Possession at the monster. It was partly affected, hesitating and shaking its head, but at least it did not start chewing. This gave Zachary just enough time to throw Old Man Winter at the side of the monster's jaw, freezing it partly open, saving blue Elizabeth from becoming bubble gum.

Eleanor focused her telekinesis to grasp the monster's jawbone to hold it open. Booker then cast Bucking Bronco to slightly pull the monster upward a bit, though it clearly was too gigantic to be wholly affected by the Vigor.

No one continued shooting, not with Elizabeth in the way, but the Gun Automaton continued shooting. The Pinkerton caused the automaton to disappear. Old Elizabeth looked like she desperately tried to open a Tear, but failed.

The Fireman ran forth and drop-kick the monster, whilst the Zealot hacked away at it, though these did little. The Vox Beasts charged as well, clubbing the monster with their shotguns, trying anything to free the girl. Another swarm of Murderous Crows gnawed on the skull.

Elizabeth grabbed the teeth and tried to pull herself out, feeling the coldness of dry ice. The skull applied force to its jaw, gradually breaking some ice apart. It tilted backwards, and the skull began to retract into the water. As the monster descended, Booker ran through the Vox and jumped forth.

"I gotcha!' Booker shouted as he fell headfirst down the monster's mouth just as it forced its jaw closed, shards of ice flying. Elizabeth extended her arm, feeling herself sliding backwards. Booker landed on the back of the monster's tongue, sliding after Elizabeth.

The skull flailed itself violently, Booker and Elizabeth flopping around in its mouth. Shaking off the effects of Vigors and Plasmids, the monster pulled itself back into the waters. After a splash, it was gone.

"Oh, they got eaten," Sofia commented.

Zachary, the Vox, and the Elizabeths ran to the edge of the hole. They only saw bubbles, but the Tear was gone.

"Aww, _shhhit!_ " Zachary cursed, trying to think of something. "What the hell can we do!?"

Eleanor ran to her Big Sister suit, kicking her shoes off. She threw the suit up, outstretching it with her psychokinesis, then teleported inside it. All of a sudden she was conveniently back in her Big Sister suit.

"I'll swim after them! I'll try to send-" Eleanor was cut off by a wail. Everyone looked up, hearing the wail again, followed by crashing and breaking noises.

Crawling into the lighthouse was the buzzard, leaking water out every opening and joint. Eyes red, Songbird crawled headfirst down the shaft, diving into the water. Wings and arms tucked against his sides, Songbird barely fit down the vertical passage, but he noisily writhed into the depths.

"-send a bathysphere up here, if I can!" Eleanor finished. Teleporting, she disappeared.


	38. Chapter 38 - Abyssal

Eleanor swam after Songbird, and Songbird swam after the descending monster. The yellow light from her helmet revealed tiles on the walls, with shapes of diamonds and slotted squares. Ten fathoms. A statue of an angelic man. Eighteen fathoms...

Songbird did not stop even at this depth. He clawed and writhed after the monster, Eleanor even feeling the walls shake.

 _Quite relentless is that Big Daddy bird…_

Static and tuning hit her in the head. Eleanor groaned, hands smacking into her helmet, and convulsed. More yellow light beamed out her visor. Shaking, she scrunched up into a fetal position, and let herself sink down the passage. To make things worse, she felt extreme pain in her stomach, as if her guts wanted to erupt through her belly. She pressed a hand on her stomach, but could do nothing but sink facedown. Blood pooled against her visor, blotting out some light.

The static in Eleanor's mind became so fierce, she disconnected from reality. The shaking infrastructure, Songbird's underwater screaming, bubbles, the water itself...she could not sense anything except the damn static and tuning grinding her brain.

 _What's going on!?_

 _'Don't let him get over your head.' That's what you told Booker, wasn't it?_ Spirry's voice gurgled in Eleanor's thoughts, warm, glowing blood bubbling out her mouth. _I suppose he did better than you all along, hm?_

Eleanor sharply inhaled through clenched teeth. "Whah...what do… What do you want?"

 _Home...the place you are supposed to be. The place you are meant to be. I want you home._

"Why?"

 _I am Rapture, Rapture is me. This also applies to you, doesn't it? And everything that you became applies to me. Everything that you will become is me._

 _Not if I forget all my memories,_ Eleanor thought.

 _Indeed. Come home before you lose everything, so that you gain everything. I am waiting. You will know where to find me. But, for now, sleep, and...dream into the darkness._

Eleanor just limply sank.

 _Well, this sucks…_

Songbird screamed. Eleanor would have flinched if she could. Bubbles rose, followed by blood. Eleanor's body became enshrouded with blood. Down below, Songbird reached the monster, clutching it and spread its skull apart...

* * *

He sat up with a gasp, feeling warmth and moisture everywhere. He only saw blackness. Groaning, he stood up, wondering what the hell happened.

"Elizabeth? Elizabeth!? ELIZABETH!"

"Why are you yelling? I'm right beside you..."

"Oh. Sorry."

Elizabeth always had a knack for disappearing and reappearing no matter where she went.

"Elizabeth, you alright?"

"Yeah."

"Do you feel that? Feels like...wind?" Booker asked. Indeed, air flowed back and forth slowly, warm in one direction, and cold in the other.

"That's not wind, Booker. It's the monster breathing," Elizabeth corrected.

"Smells salty. Guess we'll have to dig our way out this thing."

"We are under the ocean, Booker."

"W-... You're right. So, what, we just wait for this thing to digest us?"

"Well, that would be slower than drowning... Let's just look around. I'll be able to open a Tear sooner or later."

Booker cast a mild form of Devil's Kiss, illuminating the place. Fleshy, pink, smooth surfaces surrounded them. Nerves and veins mapped the flesh, Elizabeth examining them as she walked around. They noticed water dripping here and there, one drop landing on Elizabeth's cheek and rolling onto her lips. She spat, and wiped her mouth. Occasionally, she tried to open a Tear, but it never worked.

Sometimes, the walls rumbled, but everything inside the monster was quite sound proof and insulated. Soft, squishy patting echoed farther down the monster's stomach, accompanied by a sliding noise and slow, heavy breathing.

"Something's moving," Booker warned. Since he lost his Brustgun from his fall, he only had his Broadsider to withdraw. Devil's Kiss intensified in his left hand.

"Booker, I don't think you should play with fire down here. I'd rather not drown in vomit."

"Uh, same." Booker's Vigor reverted to a mild form. He saw a pair of glowing yellow eyes ascending within the beast. "Aw, jeez! So they've got monsters inside of monsters now?"

The monster appeared to have the bodily shape of a human, but did not have skin or limbs. Its skull and jaw were quite long, and it repeatedly titled its head to and fro, neck making cracking noises. Its pelvis connected to a fleshy tube, and the fleshy tube came from within the monster's gullet.

Booker raised his Broadsider, but then more water leaked from above. Songbird's wailing reached the monster, partly echoing down its throat. The monster slid backwards, disappearing in the darkness.

"Songbird!" Elizabeth exclaimed, half excitedly, half nervously.

"If he rips through the skull, water will pour in, and…"

"We'll die." Elizabeth looked at Booker, and looked frightened. "Booker, I… I don't wanna die like this…"

"We won't." They heard lots of water falling.

Elizabeth ran up the stomach, or tried to. She reached a torrent of saltwater mixed with blood flowing down the monster's esophagus. The monster shook, grumbling, stomach audibly churning. Songbird's screaming echoed again.

"Songbird! Stop!" Elizabeth cried while trying to climb up the walls of the monster's insides.

"That damn buzzard really doesn't know when to quit!"

"Wait, I'll just-" Elizabeth put her hands together, and opened a Tear. To her surprise, water blasted out the Tear, knocking her over.

"Close it! _Close it!_ " Elizabeth did so, the water up to her ankles. The water was filling up the monster's stomach, Booker and Elizabeth soon knee-deep in cold water. "Ohhh, shhhit!" He holstered his pistol.

It was not long until Elizabeth and Booker resorted to swimming, clawing at the esophagus to stay afloat. Elizabeth kept yelling at Songbird to stop as more and more of the waterfall turned red, Songbird screaming like crazy…

Up above, Songbird fought the monster with all his might, eyes red. He ripped through the skull and made a mess of the brains and mouth. The monster could do nothing as Songbird burrowed into it. His violent behaviour soon destroyed a section of the vertical passageway. Songbird's body unraveled, wings and limbs spreading. He rammed his feet into the remains of the skull, talons gripping it, and began flapping his wings and swimming upwards, trying anything to stop it from taking Elizabeth away. The monster underneath him groaned, and shot up, but that did nothing against Songbird. Blood, brains, and chunks of flesh floated past Songbird.

Whatever his mechanical heart and mind could imagine, Songbird paused, then put his head down the monster's skull. Could he hear something? Or someone? His bond sensed something of Elizabeth's desires. Although constructed to protect her no matter what, his mechanical soul sensed something different. He stopped.

Yellow light appeared above Songbird. His eyes likewise turned yellow, and he looked up. Eleanor sank in a fetal position, visor yellow. She descended like a baby. He raised a paw, and let Eleanor fall onto it. He leaned in to take a closer look, unsure of what was wrong with Eleanor.

Songbird looked to the side, staring through the glass of the passage. The black entity appeared, howling, a massive volume of bubbles escaping its mouth, swimming like a giant eel. Songbird's eyes turned red. He covered Eleanor with his fingers and wailed, swimming forth to meet his foe.

The two monsters clashed, Songbird gripping the black entity's neck with his free hand and headbutting it repeatedly in the face. The entity's jaw extended and it bit over Songbird's entire head. The two exchanged claws and talons…

Back inside the skull monster, Elizabeth and Booker struggled to stay afloat.

"Elizabeth! Eliza-" Booker shouted, grabbing Elizabeth's wrist to pull her out the water, yet there was almost no space for air left inside the monster.

Coughing, Elizabeth desperately kicked and pawed. So much water ran down the monster's insides, that Elizabeth felt nothing but the waterfall. She could not breathe without water getting in her mouth.

 _I, I'm drowning!_

Elizabeth found herself unable to breathe. She felt her entire body tingle and bite with coldness. She waved her arms through the water, but didn't know where Booker went. His Vigor extinguished, and now, there was just blackness. She felt his hand for a moment, but they lost each other.

" _Mmm-mnnh!_ " Elizabeth wanted to scream, to say something, to do something. She at least wanted to say 'thank-you' to him before dying.

She let out a little air, bubbles leaving her mouth. Naturally, she swam upwards, clawing at the water, hoping to find an air pocket or something. Instead, there was just blackness and water. Her stomach felt sharply empty, then that crushing feeling expanded into her chest. Elizabeth gasped and convulsed, feeling herself sinking. She couldn't swim upwards anymore.

 _Is this it? But I don't..._

Through squinted eyes and salty pain, Elizabeth noticed glowing yellow rising from below. It was that monster again, who leaned into her, the two face-to-face. Elizabeth screamed, bubbles leaving her mouth. In her panic, she thrashed and kicked, feeling the monster slide around her body. She would have screamed again, but forgot she was underwater, and sucked in a mouthful of water. Her teeth erupted with icy pain.

The monster's torso split open, its lungs and diaphragm writhing out and floating. Its intestines hung out and wriggled up, the slimy things wiggling up Elizabeth's skirt and over her face. One intestine split apart, then shot onto her mouth, much to her surprise and discomfort. She had another surprise when she felt the intestine suck on her mouth.

The monster turned, its glowing eyes revealing Booker convulsing, clutching his throat. The monster looked at him, and the other split length of his intestine extended, slipping over his mouth. He had no idea what was going on, but stopped convulsing, and his body relaxed a little.

Elizabeth realized she was...breathing? The monster slowly turned around, looking at her again. Her heart skipped a beat, then she felt her guts churning. Face illuminated by yellow light, Elizabeth reared as the monster examined her. It then descended, more of its fleshy tubes appeared and wrapping around Elizabeth and Booker, pulling them down with it.

Gigantic muscles bulged up above, which burst blood vessels and snapped veins, until the monster's throat sealed. The stomach gurgled and rumbled, and the water bubbled.

The monster turned, then its body retracted, and it pulled Elizabeth and Booker with it. They descended farther down the insides. The walls seemed to make a swallowing effect, transporting the two humans down a division in the passageway. They plopped down to a fleshy chamber, some water spewing after them, but they were no longer swimming nor connected to the fleshy tubes. Elizabeth went on her hands and knees, coughing, and shivering.

"Elizabeth!" Booker called, rolling over and grabbing the girl's back. Once she controlled herself, she looked at Booker. He chuckled, and tried to smile. "See? Told you we'd make it." Elizabeth chuckled.

"Not sure what that creepy thing was, but I am grateful he helped us. Nice to know that not every cthulhu wants to kill us. I hope Songbird is okay, I could have sworn I heard him screaming."

The two noticed yellow beaming onto them. They got up and looked around.

The strange monster that saved them squirmed out the wall, some water leaking. It arched towards the two, Elizabeth taking a step back from the grotesque thing. It did not have a mouth, only a series of vertical slits where its mouth would be. The creature seemed to be inhaling and exhaling at the same time.

The limbless creature's torso gradually closed, sucking its guts back in. Booker grabbed his pistol and stood in front of Elizabeth, unsure if something bad would happen next. The limbless monster extended, staring at Booker. It steadily became level with him. Its eyes made static and tuning noises, and blood dripped out its slits-mouth.

"Michael?" The monster's voice was monotonous, masculine, almost computer-like. It cocked its head.

"Uh...no? I'm Booker." Booker's hands relaxed over his pistol, he and Elizabeth surprised that the monster could actually speak. The monster nodded.

"Bookkeeper?" the monster asked; whenever it spoke, blood dripped out its slits. Booker raised an eyebrow. The monster turned, looking at Elizabeth. "Who are you? You look like her, the one from his dreams… Is your name Sympathy?"

"No, I'm...Elizabeth, mister."

"Which god?" The monster's question caused her to frown. She did not know what kind of question that was meant to be.

"Uh, what?"

"Which god is your oath?" Again, Elizabeth was unsure of what the monster was asking.

"Listen, pal, we just need to get out of here. You can help us, right?" The monster looked at Booker.

"Bookkeeper, do you serve a god?"

"No!" Booker turned, dismissively waving an arm at such a stupid question, but also irritated that the thing was not really cooperating. He took a few steps and put his hands on his forehead. He was tired of everything. Elizabeth went to him.

"Booker?" she whispered, wanting to comfort him.

"Everything I keep seeing is more and more proof of a godless universe, that's for sure." The monster nodded, then looked back at Elizabeth.

"Oath-god, are you also an unbeliever?" She hesitated.

"I...don't know. I don't think about it much."

"Perhaps the bookkeeper and the oath-god will be born again."

"And what's that supposed to mean?" Booker asked, facing the thing.

"To be reborn is to reach amalgamation and synchrony...of mind, body, and soul."

"Okay… What's the supposed to mean?"

"My god will show you, bookkeeper."

The walls of tissue moved, then sections here and there split open, nerves hanging and blood leaking out. Fist-sized eyeballs stuck out through the split flesh and leaking blood, all staring at Booker.

"What the hell?" Booker remarked.

"That's really, really gross…" Elizabeth commented.

One by one, the eyeballs faintly glowed yellow, tuning and static sounding from them. It was not long until Booker felt the sharp static and tuning in himself.

"Booker, you're bleeding…"

He touched his nose, watching the blood roll down his fingers.

"Listen," the monster requested. The tuning and static adjusted and whined before becoming stable.

"I am Mikha'el Va'Ahtar," Spirry's voice sounded from all around, distorted by the usual tuning and static. Booker and Elizabeth scanned the area, though the demon was nowhere in sight. "I'll ask you a simple question: should a man be driven by his blood?"

"What the hell is this? You better let us out!" Booker yelled, but the guide did nothing.

A Rapture ghost appeared, a man sitting on a chair and smoking a pipe. Booker instinctively raised his Broadsider and fired once, but the bullet passed through the Rapture ghost without doing anything.

"Is that something like your mother?"

"No. It's something else. Not sure what, though," Elizabeth answered.

"Yes, says Andrew Ryan, a man is entitled to his blood and sweat," Spirry's voice returned. The Rapture ghost disappeared, then several more reappeared, looking like soldiers.

"Yes, says the man in Columbia, our blood for Father Comstock."

"I don't give a damn! Are you gonna let us out of here, or what?"

The Rapture ghosts changed into various Splicers.

"Yes, says Dr. Sofia Lamb, the family is the blood."

"Hey! Answer _me_!"

The ghostly imaging turned into a large crucifix.

"Yes, says the man in Christianity, the blood of Jesus Christ for us."

The crucifix transformed into a hammer and sickle.

"Yes, says the man in Communism, we crave the blood of the nobility."

Neither Elizabeth nor Booker seemed impressed.

"I certainly understood such answers. Yet, I wanted to create not what was impossible, but what should not even exist…" The ghostly images changed into fleshy monsters and various man-sized organs with limbs.

The ghostly imagery disappeared. The wall of flesh split open by several feet, blood gushing, revealing transparent cartilage serving as a window. After passing rock formations covered with seaweed, starfish, and crabs, beyond rising bubbles, a few skyscrapers and glass tunnels became visible far down, illuminated by yellow lights beaming from the ocean floor and the sides of the skyscrapers. The rest of Rapture was lost to the abyss.

Most of Rapture's lighting was dead, the only sign with constant power being for the Finley company building. A few other ads flashed, but other than that, the beaming yellow lights provided the only illumination. How these lights had electricity was not known.

Booker frowned.

"A city underwater? Ridiculous."

"Hunh, seems...fascinating," Elizabeth remarked.

"If that's supposed to amaze me, it sure didn't work."

It was Elizabeth's turn to frown. As their ride continued, they saw a fleshy monster swimming along a tunnel.

"Wait, do you feel that?" Elizabeth asked.

The two felt heavy pulsating pass through their feet, consisting of two beats every few seconds. Even their bio-vehicle shook a little.

"But what did I create?" Spirry's voice returned.

Here and there in Rapture, minor Tears appeared, causing more lighting to phase into this world, illuminating more of the city and waters. All the lights turned towards the abyss, revealing a silhouette perhaps a hundred feet wide and tall.

The silhouette gradually formed glowing red cracks, looking like a vast network of glowing veins. Then, a pair of giant spheres near the top appeared, glowing yellow, beaming spotlights through Rapture, illuminating long sections of the ocean floor. Booker and Elizabeth could clearly see what appeared to be a beating heart the size of a house, with a dozen fleshy tentacles serving as arms, crawling along. A school of fish nibbled at it. Nearby were a few sunken military submarines and even a few battleships and destroyers, more strange things that bewildered the passengers.

Even stranger, was that the ocean floor had its own nervous system and veins, glowing bright pink. The endless, labyrinthine biology also stretched from skyscraper to skyscraper, as if flesh had grown throughout Rapture into spider web-like formations. Tumours, lungs, hearts, brains, livers and other organs sometimes the size of houses decorated Rapture and the ocean floor here and there. Even giant eyeballs the size of cars made an appearance on the ocean floor and sides of the buildings, all eyes glowing yellow and producing static, many staring back at Booker and Elizabeth.

"Witness my history… Apocatastasis," Spirry's voice narrated, then all lighting intensified again, with such force that tuning and static reverberated throughout the waters surrounding Rapture. Even smoke appeared above the lights.

Booker grabbed his head from the pain, Elizabeth covering her ears, both their noses bleeding. Their friend's eyes beamed like lasers, though he appeared untroubled by the struggling frequency.

Rapture erupted with dark bluish light coming from the abyss, causing many fish to swim away. A Tear-textured aura appeared from the dark bluish light, flowing upwards like northern lights. If it was one gigantic Tear, all it revealed was endless waters.

However, the explosion of light also revealed a mountain of translucent flesh that became transparent towards the top, where the two glowing spheres were inside. The spheres were upward-facing eyes set deeply within, similarly to the anatomy of a spook fish. Behind the eyes was the brain, emitting zaps. Glowing purplish-pink circles lined down the sides of the head, mixing well with the glowing red veins.

The lighting also revealed two elbows pointing up, forearms down, at either side of the head. Was the gigantic monster crawling out of the abyss? A series of immense mechanical columns connected to the oversized monster's skeletal structure, undoubtedly being greatly extended lengths of skyborne machinery reaching all the way to the bottom of the ocean. The monster's heart beat so heavily that all of Rapture must have felt it.

The beast groaned, shaking the ocean floor. Slowly, the monster tilted its head back, revealing a second pair of glowing yellow eyes at the front of its face, and a mouth shaped like that of an anglerfish. The sides of its mouth had a webbing of tissue lined with barbed spines, comparable to the cloak of a vampire squid.

"My god has begotten new life." Elizabeth and Booker looked at their guide, then back to the abyssal monster.

The huge monster convulsed, blood murking up the water in front of its face. It growled deeply, shaking Rapture and causing a torrent of bubbles to burst from its mouth. The monster then threw its head back, the static noise letting off a piercing screech sounding like a screaming baby.

A large Tear appeared over the monster's upper eyes, rippling violently and causing streaks of distorted light to beam out. The monster reacted as if a great force hit it in the head. A torrent of blood sprayed out its forehead, and some sort of glossy, hunchbacked-like appendage ten feet thick but sixty feet long burst through the Tear with a guttural screech, and subsequently, had burst through the skull. The tip of the appendage was somewhat shaped like a human face, the eye sockets empty but beaming yellow. Instead of a jaw, the monster had a suction mouth. Bright, glowing, purplish-pink circles lined down the sides.

With the giant monster having head injuries, the troubling static lessened in intensity, relieving Elizabeth and Booker of their pain.

Squirming like a giant parasite, the immense slug-like thing wriggled out the Tear, and it swam off, moaning like a whale. It dove into a lung growing out the ocean floor, affixing its mouth onto the lung, where it presumably began eating.

With much struggle, the monster put a clawed hand over the hole in its head, but the Tear remained. Several lengths of skyborne machinery erupted through the Tear, which the monster grabbed and ripped out. The holes in its head began healing rapidly.

The gargantuan monster screamed, extending its arms and leaning backwards over the abyss, but it did not fall. A much larger Tear formed in its chest. Several pairs of glowing yellow eyes appeared, then several more of the giant slug-things squirmed halfway out the Tear. They seemed to get stuck, taking turns squirming in and out while writhing or wobbling, moaning like whales.

Booker was dumbstruck, and Elizabeth's jaw was left open.

"If those giant slugs are trying to leave a dry world by swimming against the force of the ocean…" Elizabeth mumbled, but Booker wasn't sure what to say.

The monster leaned forwards with a mighty growl. It violently raised its hands and grasped the waters near its head, then slammed them down. Two Tears appeared, each forming vortexes as the ocean began draining through them. The monster groaned, placing its hands together and ripping open a third Tear, which expanded without affecting the water. The Tear continued expanding until it covered the monster, plus about a hundred feet all around it. In an instance, all the water within the third Tear disappeared. The monster's chin slammed against the moist ocean floor.

Several more large Tears appeared within the monster's head, showcasing various locations of various worlds. Curiously enough, one of the Tears wiggled out the monster, launched a few hundred feet, and erupted, summoning a metal pyramid from somewhere. Another Tear extended, becoming tubular, and gushed out a slurry of blood both liquid and gooey. The slurry quickly moulded into shapes, and floppy humanoid things emerged, crawling around.

"What no artist could ever dream of… What no scientist could ever create… Greater than Rapture or Columbia or SHODAN... Not just a construct, but a living city. A city that is amalgamation and synchrony of body, mind and soul...and Tears. With your blood, you too, can be born again…"

Spirry's message finally ended. Booker and Elizabeth looked at each other, then back at their guide.

"I sense danger," the limbless thing stated, then screeching and wailing erupted outside.

The black entity and Songbird sunk up ahead, both grasping and clawing at each other, Songbird's eyes red. Songbird had finally busted his foe open, but likewise was cracked and leaking. Songbird was not designed for deep sea pressure, gradually being crushed by the pressure, but nonetheless fought on.

The black entity, untroubled by the deep pressure, overpowered Songbird and kicked him down. It then spun around, swimming towards Booker and Elizabeth, eyes locked on them.

"She no longer listens, her rage endless," the limbless monster said.

"She? That's a she?" Booker asked, then the black entity's roar reverberated through the waters.

"She will not struggle to break through this transport's walls," the limbless monster warned.

"Ohh, shhit!"

"C'mon, c'mon, work!" Elizabeth began opening a Tear, but struggled.

Spreading her arms, the black entity howled, but then something pulled her backwards. She let out a hiccup, a single big bubble leaving her huge mouth. Songbird had grabbed her tail, pulling her away from Elizabeth and Booker. With the advantage of surprise, Songbird managed to manipulate the entity's left arm with both hands, then snapped the elbow backwards. She howled, turning around to fight back. After the two balled up and exchanged claws, Songbird grasped her jaw and wrenched it, breaking it. He would have ripped the jawbone right off, but Songbird's left eye shattered. He grabbed his missing eye and convulsed, body gradually breaking from pressure.

The black entity spun around and swam away using her wings, tail and legs. She looked around, but Eleanor was nowhere in sight.

Songbird swam after his foe, but his hull creaked and groaned, bolts loosening, parts undoing. He turned around, seeing Elizabeth with both hands against the cartilage-window. He swam to her, slowly breaking apart. He let out a mournful cry.

Elizabeth tightly shut her eyes, warm tears squeezing out. She let her forehead lean against the window.

"Songbird… It's okay, I'm here…" Songbird gently placed his hand against the window, Elizabeth doing likewise. He leaned in, eyes turning yellow. "Songbird…" Songbird's eyes turned green, and he made a compassionate groan while softly pressing his head against the window. "Thank you, Songbird… Goodbye…"

Songbird's other eye cracked. He curled into a fetal position and sank, smoking and breaking. At long last, the ocean embraced him. He would never move again.


	39. Chapter 39 - Somewhere

She groaned in her helm, and sat up, hand on her yellow-lit visor. Vision blurry and head pounding, Eleanor grasped a handful of...wet sand...and let it pour onto her lap.

"Huh...I thought I was sinking." Eleanor looked up, her visor illuminating a dark ceiling made of water with a Tear-aura. "Wait, I was...underwater…" She spread her arms and moved them around. Indeed, she was not in water, despite being on the ocean floor. Oddly enough, she felt the ocean floor pulsating under her buttocks and legs, as if the ocean floor had a heartbeat, though her hearing was quite distorted.

 _Some sort of Tear is keeping this area water-free._

Something huge and slimy crawled from the side. Eleanor's visor revealed a heart the size of a house with starfish-like fleshy appendages. It beat like a giant drum.

"That's...not supposed to be here…" She picked herself up, and brushed her thighs off. "Hunh, that...heart-creature smells like ADAM." Looking around, Eleanor realized that the ocean floor was overgrown with veins and tendons.

The next thing Eleanor saw was a metal pyramid, about the size of the skyscrapers. Eleanor raised an eyebrow.

"Where did that come from? Never in Rapture was there a pyramid…"

A mound of thick blood was also nearby, fleshy appendages moving in them. Eleanor saw bloody footprints trailing off into the darkness.

After regaining her senses fully, Eleanor could hear, apparently, a beating heart reverberate underneath the ocean floor. Other features were various Tears, lights beaming out the skyscrapers, fleshy growths here and there, and a Tear-aura flowing upwards like one immense aurora borealis.

 _The Luminescent Biomass sheds a darker light, now._ Eleanor had a feeling she was being watched, the same feeling she had in Ireland a few times. Though, if Spirry stalked her still, she could not see him anywhere, for now. Although very faint, Eleanor thought she heard the distant cry of a small girl, seemingly coming from the Luminescent Biomass.

Eleanor turned around, seeing a red translucent image perhaps a hundred feet tall and wide, the same monster Booker and Elizabeth had seen. However, the monster appeared to be leaning over, as if sleeping, front eyes closed. The upwards-facing eyes in the transparent top of its skull were visible, the brain visibly behind the eyes, zapping a bit. The mechanical columns connected to the monster's spine and arms vibrated, machinery creaking.

The monster snorted, and reared backwards. Its front eyes opened, beaming immense spotlights upon Eleanor. She quickly covered her visor with her hands and spun around, feeling the usual frequencies reverberate within her skull. She tried to walk away, but her legs felt like jelly.

 _Elllehnnorrr…_ whispered a mighty voice in her mind, which gave her a headache.

"Did you grow out of the the biomass!?"

Eleanor's helm formed a yellowish aura and she fell, clutching her helmet. With a groan, Eleanor crawled away. She wanted to teleport, but her Plasmids were not working, similarly to what Spirry did to her in the first dream so long ago.

The abyssal monster grunted and looked away. Eleanor partly recovered, and got up again. She turned around to see what was going on. A Tear appeared in the monster's chest, then another giant human-faced slug-thing burst through the Tear, screeching wildly and wiggling to and fro.

"The sea slugs shouldn't grow _that_ big!" Upon speaking, the giant sea slug snorted and looked at Eleanor, pausing. It cocked its head, licked its teeth, then writhed out the Tear. It swam a short distance and dove through the Tear-sealed water, flopping onto the moist ocean floor.

Moaning like a whale, the giant sea slug wriggled towards Eleanor, snapping its teeth repeatedly. Eleanor wasted no time and threw a fireball at the damn thing, impact searing its face. The sea slug screeched, but kept wiggling forth.

The abyssal monster roared, a Tear forming in its mouth. About a dozen mechanical lengths shot out the Tear, identical to the skyborne machinery. The lengths slammed around Eleanor, a few digging into the giant sea slug. She barely dodged the last few mechanical lengths.

Eleanor teleported a short distance away, the mechanical things squirming after it. She ran past the giant tentacled heart, then dove through the wall of the Tear holding the ocean back. Re-entering the waters of Rapture, Eleanor swam like a dolphin as fast as she could. The mechanical lengths went after her, but she was faster than they underwater.

 _That was close. But I still can't use my Plasmids to full extent. Those painful frequencies really can damage my genetic code._

Eleanor swam casually, then heard the moan of a whale. She twirled, seeing the silhouette of another human-faced sea slug, mouth agape, patterns glowing. Eleanor gasped. Even she got frightened from sudden terrors, but she spiralled out the way, rolling along the side of the huge monster. The big beast swam off, thrashing its head side to side and snapping at the waters.

Eleanor heard several more whale-moans in different directions. The glowing patterns of giant sea slugs appeared here and there. It was not long until she saw their humanoid faces emerge from the darkness, moaning, mouths stretching open.

"Now I know how a seal feels…" Eleanor dodged the first incoming sea slug, Electrobolted another, then teleported to avoid a few more. She reappeared elsewhere, but the damn monsters turned and swam after her. _Do they always know where I am?_

Eleanor scanned the remaining buildings of Rapture and swam to the biggest one: Fontaine Futuristics. She figured she could swim as fast as her predators.

"Spirry having a similar genetic code as Gil Alexander… Suitable place to find out what the hell is going on down here. I hope Booker and Elizabeth are alright...haven't seen that skull-monster yet." A school of fish swam past her.

Eleanor swam towards the corporate headquarters, the giant sea slugs after her. She relied on underwater acrobatics and teleportation to avoid them. The whooshing of water and their moans were creepy, but she managed without problems.

"Hm, I wonder if…" After evading one beast, she rammed her wrist-mounted needle into it as it swam passed her. Ripping her needle out, she turned the valve, she felt her body burn from some sort of overdose, the veins in her eyes and under her skin bulged painfully.

" _Woo-fff-woowah!_ " Eleanor's bones and tendons made popping sounds. She could not stop shaking, teeth clicking loudly. Her heart, lungs, veins and muscles overworked, a mix of pain and power. Amidst the pain, her entire body tingled with pleasure.

She inadvertently released an Electrobolt as powerful as lightning. A few giant sea slugs turned upside-down, twitching. One by one they recovered, dazed.

It was hard for her to swim while shaking. She teleported, but ended up not where she intended, reappearing beside one of the sea slugs. She intended to teleport again, but instead cast a fireball, which instantly died with a sizzle.

"Okay...no more ADAM from giant monsters…" Teleportation unreliable until the overdose subsided, she performed maladroit swimming. _And I'll need to enter Rapture to escape them._

She heard a bubbly roar, and the black entity returned. It swam at the nearest giant sea slug, and dug its claws and teeth into the moaning slug's head. Within seconds, the black entity ripped its soft prey open. The reek of ADAM avalanched everywhere, Eleanor convulsing.

" _Ughh!_ Never thought ADAM would make me gag!"

The other giant sea slugs groaned, a few swimming away, but the black entity went after them. Although she appreciated its help, Eleanor very much preferred to keep a distance from the glossy monster. She swam off into the darkness.

Eventually, Eleanor noticed the Atlantic Express railway system of Fontaine Futuristics, going from its lobby further into Rapture. Oddly enough, the rail systems were undamaged. In fact, there seemed to be much more rails than Eleanor remembered.

"What? Long ago did most of the Atlantic Express collapse. To be rebuilt so quickly is not possible. Huh... The little ladies could revert parts of Sinclair's plane into a past form. Someone down here can do the same."

As Eleanor swam closer to Fontaine Futuristics, she saw that the building was overgrown with veins, tendons, and elongated organs, some of the organs even gently swaying in the water. She saw hearts beating, lungs pumping, and tubular organs working away. Curiously enough, sunflower-like plants grew out the fleshy growths, facing the light cast by the Luminescent Biomass in the trenches.

"Huh. Father collected some of those ADAM-infused plants. Whatever experiments Mother and Gil performed, Spirry had clearly allowed to get out of control."

As Eleanor swam, she observed, seeing some organs with fleshy appendages and fishtails, crudely swimming. Down below, some sort of creature resembling something between a fetus and a crab scuttled along, eating the fleshy biomass. To her surprise, she even saw some trees growing out the ocean floor, reminding her of Arcadia. However, these trees had seaweed-like leaves and coral-like bark.

"Seems that new forms of life are rapidly evolving. Considering the fleshy growth, then..."

 _The growing properties of plants are merged with bodily tissues...that would explain the fleshy biomass. Huh, bodily tissue growing as plants do… Ugh, Mother…blasting Persephone into the trench just caused Gil's experiments to plunge into the Luminescent Biomass, inducing extreme mutations. If they reach the surface...there's no way the survivors of the skyborne machinery will last long._

Eventually, Eleanor reached the building. She placed her hands on a dirty window, and looked inside with her one eye.

"It doesn't look flooded. I'll have to send the train and a bathysphere back for the others." She teleported into the headquarters, ending up upside-down on her head. She fell onto her back with a splat, then got up and looked around.

Inside was quite different. The checkered flooring, walls, ceilings, hallways, columns, furniture, crates, security cameras, and general ruinous features were mostly covered with fleshy growth. The veins of the fleshy growth cast light, similarly to the Luminescent Biomass down the trench. It seemed that, somehow, giant lungs here and there pumped oxygen, whilst muscular tubular organs had drained the water. The fleshy biomass had sealed all leaks. Here and there grew those ADAM-infused plants, occasionally spitting out polyps.

The only sign of normalcy came from the radios. Eleanor almost wanted to hum along, hearing a security camera trying to turn within its tomb of living meat. She did not stumble upon anything remarkable, though did find a Vita-Chamber caked in fleshy growth. She sighed, thinking about Father.

 _I wish Father could just… Suddenly emerge from there and hug me..._

" _Hah hah hah hah hah hah hah hah hahhh!_ " The clown caused Eleanor to jump. "Kill your cravings at the Circus of Values!" A fist through the flesh-growth covering the vending machine and its mechanical innards never felt so good.

"Alright...let's keep looking for clues. From here can I send the train. I'll do that first, then try to find a bathysphere..."

After teleporting multiple times and snooping around, Eleanor found the train depot of Fontaine Futuristics. The fleshy growth was here, too.

She sighed with relief.

"The train's here. Good." Eleanor investigated the schedule and map. To her surprise, more areas were accessible. "Hm. I can send this train to an Adonis Luxury Resort station, and to the Hephaestus station that also leads to Arcadia… Once a bathysphere returns to the Lighthouse, the others can enter Rapture, make their way to Arcadia, board the train, then directly arrive back here. Perfect."

The train's door slid open, revealing a clean interior, untouched by Enaedonai. Eleanor went in activated the switch, then noticed rather large, bloody footprints inside the train. The large blast door outside opened, lighting activated one at a time, and the train descended into the ocean.

Eleanor took her helmet off and put it down, gently shaking her head, hair flowering. She felt relieved to take that thing off. Her eyes followed the bloody, animalistic footprints.

"Spirry's footprints…" They led out the train's doors, though he did not seem to have ever walked into the train. "Huh." Eleanor heard static. She looked around and found a radio sitting in a puddle of blood. She picked it up, increasing the volume. She heard distorted gunfire and shouting.

"Hello? Can anyone hear me?" Eleanor called. There was just gunfire, soon accompanied by screeching and hissing. A child's scream came. " _Cindy!_ "

"What are dem t'ings?" The radio picked up an Irishman's distorted accent, sounding like one of the Vox Beasts.

"Conor! Behind you! Oisin, help me get that thing off Greg's back!" Daisy's voice barked.

"Dammit! They just keeping coming from the ocean!" Zachary.

"Zachary, Salts!" Elizabeth.

"Thanks!"

"Burn, disgusting crab-men! Burn to death! BURN! YYYESS, YOUR FLESH MUST BURN!"

"This one looks more like a fish with two faces! I'll cleave him asunder!" Zealot.

"These monsters...they're disgusting! What are they?" Old Elizabeth.

"Elizabeth, summon that, now!"

"Gotcha!"

"Zachary! Over here!" Sofia.

"Get down, Sofia!"

"If anyone can hear me," Eleanor called into the radio, "I'm sending a train now! I'll try to find a bathysphere as fast as I can! Just hold on!"

Eleanor put the radio on the control panel, overhearing the shouting and combat. She put her helmet back on.

"Ugh, damn train is so slow… I'll have to find a bathysphere in the meantime." She teleported, reappearing in the waters, and swam off, keeping an eye out for those giant sea slugs...

As she swam, she felt static and tuning in her brain.

"Oh no! Spirry, I don't have time for you again! Why now?" Eleanor cried, though she did not feel any different.

 _Welcome back, Eleanor Lamb. If in need of a bathysphere, Porter's private vessel is currently docked, having returned sixty-six hours and six minutes ago._

Those thoughts made Eleanor pause.

"Thinker? Is that you?"

 _Yes, Eleanor. I bonded with you in London for this purpose. Allow me to guide you..._

* * *

" _Oh-whoa!_ " Booker exclaimed as he flipped mid-air, gracelessly landing atop the side of a flesh-covered table, bouncing off and hitting the floor. Elizabeth landed like a cat next to him, avoiding a leak between the table and windows. They were in a room of some sort, with a blueish chandelier, a few potted plants, and some furniture.

They looked back, seeing a series of large windows in a semi-circular, convex shape for the upper half. A large circular hole was in the big window where, apparently, some sort of gargantuan esophagus had connected to, a row of teeth along the edge of the hole in the window. It had curled from the depths down the building sometime ago. Behind the gargantuan esophagus floated the skull monster, or what was left of it, its own esophagus having protracted and connected to the gargantuan one.

"Ugh...now what?" Booker grumbled, rather displeased at the sight of flesh growing everywhere.

The limbless monster emerged from the esophagus, arching over Booker, Elizabeth lifting her shoulders and keeping a distance from the creepy thing. It slowly tilted side to side, then decided to look at Booker with its glowing yellow eyes.

"About damn time you got us out that thing," Booker said.

"Booker!" Elizabeth whispered, then took a breath to calm down. "Thanks for saving us, mister… whatever you are…"

"You are welcome. I am what I am, Tongue. Unfortunately, Bookkeeper, Oath-god…normally I would have delivered you to the lobby," speaking caused blood to leak out its mouth, "but a train blocked the way."

"Trains underwater too?" Booker wasn't amused. He and Elizabeth looked around at the odd features of Rapture. They saw what Eleanor saw: glowing flesh overgrowing architecture.

"What is all this...fleshy growth? Why does it glow?" Elizabeth pondered to herself, quite interested. "Ugh, it better not stick to my shoes…"

"The fleshy growth is Enaedonai. The glow is To Be Red, which Enaedonai biological processes in small amounts."

" _To Be Red_?" Elizabeth asked. Booker did not seem to care about any discussion, probably having enough adventure for ten lifetimes.

"In Rapture, that refers to the red liquid processed from the creatures known as Sea Slugs. Mr. Va'Ahtar referred to the source of their power as De Profundis. The denizens refer to the processed substance as ADAM, but why they abbreviate I do not know. Enaedonai is mutating, but a majority of it remains unchanged."

"Hunh...this is so...fascinating. I never even dreamt of anything like this… It's like a body growing...outside itself."

"An appropriate analogy." Tongue (the limbless monster) remarked.

"If that's the case, what about that gigantic monster outside?" Booker asked.

"It is also of Enaedonai, a section that has undergone extreme mutations because of ADAM. However, as I have said, a majority of Enaedonai remains unchanged."

"Wait, you mean we're inside that thing's body?" Booker asked, feeling a bit uncomfortable, but Elizabeth remained interested.

"What about these…" Elizabeth knelt over one of the ADAM-infused plants, quite curious, and it spat a polyp over her face. Surprisingly, she barely reacted.

"Aw, jeez...be more careful. Elizabeth, you alright?" Booker asked. Elizabeth spun around, wild-eyed, teeth clenched. "Ugh...Elizabeth?"

"I wish I killed you with that pipe wrench. You're not even a real father to me! I hope you heard me, you son of a bitch! All of this is because of you! BECAUSE OF YOU!" Elizabeth flailed that oversized head of hers, smashing it in Booker's nose. He grabbed his face and staggered, Elizabeth driving her knee into his crotch. Booker convulsed as he fell to his knees.

"Ow! What the hell are you doing Elizabeth!?"

Elizabeth grabbed her Broadsider pistol, squeezing the trigger as she pulled it out, nearly shooting her own leg. In her haste and rage, she fired into the air, then pointed it at Booker. He grabbed the pistol and threw it out her grasp. She leapt upon him, Booker falling onto his back with Elizabeth atop him. She pummeled her little fists into his face, frothing at the mouth, eyes bloodshot, veins in her temples bulging.

Despite being dainty, she did have quite a lot of buck in her. Small girls have big tempers, after all, and if there was anything Booker would never fight, it was Elizabeth.

"The polyp Enraged Oath-god," Tongue remarked nonchalantly as Elizabeth fed Booker punches.

Eventually, the polyp's Enrage effect ended. Elizabeth threw her last punch, smoking Booker in the left eye. She pulled her other arm back then paused, breathing heavily. Slowly, her lips covered her teeth, and she raised her eyebrows, eyes big.

"Ya done, yet?" Booker asked, regaining his senses. He looked at Elizabeth's pulled arm, a little blood dripping from her ripped knuckles, and expected another blow.

Elizabeth did not move. She tried to figure out why she attacked Booker, but could not find an answer.

"Oh, I, um… Sorry, Booker." Her arms and shoulders dropped. After another pause, eyes kept low, Elizabeth got off Booker. Eyebrows lowering to the sides, Elizabeth turned around and walked away, ashamed. "Mr. DeWitt, I'm… I'm so sorry."

"You only punched me for half a minute," Booker grumbled as he picked himself up, touching his nose. For once, his nose did not bleed from extradimensional frequencies. "Elizabeth?" She inhaled sharply, whimpered, and ran off. "Elizabeth!" After taking a step, the pain in Booker's crotch cracked throughout his pelvis. He groaned and fell to his knees. " _Elizabeth!_ Hey! I know you're sorry! It's okay! Just wait!"

She didn't listen. Elizabeth ran down the room, a set of double doors sliding open automatically. She continued past a Bot Shutdown Panel, and the next area was larger, with columns and a stairway in the centre, mostly in ruins. The area above the stairway had a waterfall of its own, the lower floors were flooded. A vent was on the wall to her left. Elizabeth ran across the room, passing a few stacks of flesh-covered crates.

" _Elizabeth!_ " Booker's voice echoed, but she kept running like a brat caught red-handed.

Meanwhile, Booker's groin still ached with pain. He needed a bit more time before he could walk. The limbless monster raised its head as Booker picked himself up, grabbing Elizabeth's Broadsider.

"You had better hurry, the Splicers Reborn are awoken. Find Videre, he will help you."

"Videre? Where can I find him?"

"You will feel it. Think of him, he will think of you, and you will find him."

Booker dismissively waved an arm. "Well, whatever… I better find Elizabeth before she lights out of here."

"I go." The limbless creature retracted into the esophagus...

Booker soon reached the area with the stairway, though Elizabeth was long gone. He occasionally called out to her, but there was no reply. He heard the water flooding the lower floor bubble fiercely, so he turned around.

Something grotesque and disgusting jumped out of the water, looking like a horribly mutated crab-human, more crab-like for the bottom half of the body, though it did not have an exoskeleton. It's lower jaw possessed an elongated secondary jaw, complete with teeth. A pair of stalked crab-eyes stuck out the mutant's cheekbones. It walked with a set of crab-legs, and even had a pair of pincered arms going out the sides of its body. The creatures jaws opened acutely, bones cracking, and a pair of pincers stuck out.

"Jesus! What the hell!" Booker yelled. The monster extended its arm at Booker, screeching, frothy bubbles gushing out its mouth. Booker raised Elizabeth's pistol and fed the fucking thing bullets as it scuttled towards him.

The bullets hit the mutant in the face and neck, and it bled, but it nevertheless scuttled onward, swinging its pincer at him. His shields lit up, blocking most impact. Booker pushed the crab's other incoming pincer back, pistol whipped its pincer-tongue, and threw Devil's Kiss, the eruption of heat up-close causing him to wince. The mutant howled as flames flickered around it. Booker slipped his Sky-Hook on and smashed it across the mutant's stalked eye, breaking it off, then rammed it into the freak's neck. Whirring to life, the Sky-Hook wrenched the mutant's head acutely. The freak's head hung, and after a second's pause, it went limp.

Booker did not have much time to think, as several more crab mutants emerged from the flooded floor, looking around frantically. He tossed a Murder of Crows trap and ran off with some limp, the pain in his crotch still there. The trap went off, keeping the freaks busy and allowing Booker to make a getaway.

"Elizabeth! _ELLIZAAABEEETH!_ " Screaming hurt his crotch. No reply, not even after the echo. To make things worse, Booker overheard inhuman screeching and wheezing echoing behind him. "Those disgusting things better not touch her…"

* * *

Elizabeth had ended up in a dilapidated washroom, sitting in a toilet stall and crying in her hands. Her toilet at least wasn't covered in living meat, but as for her feelings...

"Why did I do it?" she whimpered amidst sniffling. Footfall sounded. She sharply inhaled, sat up, and waited.

"I think she went this woo-ayy! _Shh-th-thshhish_...where are you hiding you? You ain't better than you, baby!" a stupid-sounding male voice remarked, followed by coughing and gagging. "I wash things all the time, and I'm thtill second pick! I don't deserve my room like this! Stupid garbage humans, stop staring at me, fucking natural urges!"

"What the hell?" Elizabeth lifted her knees and shoulders. She heard some mumbling idiot banging the stall doors. She reached for her holster, but her Broadsider was not there. "Ughh, shhit!" After swearing for the first time, Elizabeth looked guilty, a few fingers on her mouth.

"I just wanted to talk! Come out, I wanna see some pearlies! Or maybe all these meat...maybe I'm already seeing the walls of her? Wait, I said hello! Anybody home!?" The Splicer continued banging on the stall doors with a pipe wrench. "I'll find ya, ya dumb cunt! I just wanted a drink 'r two!" He began grunting a tune.

"What is he mumbling about?" Elizabeth whispered to herself.

The Splicer huffed with anger, banging his head on the stall where Elizabeth sat.

"Where is she already? _Huhhhh-hooohuh-huh-huh-hah_ hah hah ha ha! I wanna find her, and everyone! And that means the baby's gotta behave for her milk for a while! I wanna to see a baby girl, end of discussion, and that's me! I do everything right! So fuck you!"

Elizabeth wasn't sure if this was worse than realizing she was being watched growing up in the tower.

"C'mon out wherever you are already! C'mere here, hussy baby, I wanna hug ya! So make me wear a dress, I got it for you, ya dumb broad! See? So keep it to yourself, ya gimp!" He reared his pipe wrench, "Open up, doll, ya fuckin' baby! _Hellllooo!_ Anybody home?" He started hitting the stall door with greater vigor. "I'm gonna bang ya up, fuckin' palooka! So go bang a hoe and get outta my room!"

Gripping his pipe wrench two-handed, he raised it overhead. The stall door swung open, smacking him in the face, causing him to stagger. Elizabeth headbutted the ugly fuck in the nose, hearing it crack. He dropped his pipe wrench while wheezing aloud, which Elizabeth stopped with a knee to his crotch. He fell over, sounding like a retarded vacuum cleaner.

Elizabeth's face contorted, one eyebrow higher than the other. She was rather aghast by the deformed appearance.

"I bet you're a guy who rapes and murders women..."

"Ohhh-oww! _Yooo_ dumb little whore! Don't test me…" he moaned weakly.

"Well, handsome, you got special problems," Elizabeth remarked as she stepped over the Splicer.

"Thtop picking on me ya fuckin' baby!"

Elizabeth left the Splicer's and his incoherent complaints behind.

"Hey, baby! You come back, just try! You need me! You're not any better than me, ya doughnut! I just wanted ta talk t'ya!" His choice of words never seemed to work. "You made me wanna do you, ya pocket hoe!"

A while later, Elizabeth began to descend the stairwell, little feet crushing the fleshy growth and veins. The waterfall of a leak was rather soothing.

"Um, Booker?" Elizabeth called. Nothing. "Ugh, it's cold down here…"

The dainty blue thing descended, but then a step broke. Her leg shot down, crotch landing against the previous step. Elizabeth's head reared with a grimace. She lifted her leg and realized weird things moving down the next floor. She paused.

The crab-like mutants Booker had encountered looked up at Elizabeth, many of them slightly hissing, foamy bubbles flowing out their mouths. One by one, they started scuttling up the stairs, crab-legs clicking against the steps.

Shaking, Elizabeth ran up the stairs. Unsurprisingly, her foot slipped, shin scraping against the edge of the step. She hoarsely inhaled through clenched teeth, hearing the mutated freaks' scuttling getting louder. Looking to and fro, Elizabeth summoned a Mosquito, which opened fire at the climbing crab-mutants. They screeched as Elizabeth ran up the stairs. It was not long until one of the freaks leapt upon the Mosquito, bringing it down to the water.

Elizabeth ran until reaching the destroyed end of the stairwell, falling short of the next floor. Frowning, the dainty lady looked down, the freaks below crawling faster and faster. The short girl jumped as best as she could with her little legs, extending her little arms. Her breasts struck the edge of the floor, knocking quite a lot of wind out of her,

" _Awwff!_ " She slouched over the ledge, fingernails digging into the fleshy growth. She picked herself up, feeling something rip the edge of her skirt. As she ran down the fleshy flooring, she heard the mutants jumping behind her. "There!" she cried, summoning a Motorized Patriot.

"Any enemy of the Prophet's seed shall feel His wrath!" The crank gun started ripping, the mutants' bodies cracking and splitting apart. While Elizabeth ran away, the Patriot smashed the crab-mutants back, but one managed to jump on his head, clamping its pincers into his gears. The pincer revolved with the gear and got stuck...

Whilst the patriot's gunfire echoed, Elizabeth ran around a corner, slipping on the fleshy floor and falling down.

" _Ohhh!_ " She grimaced as she extended her hands, palms sliding along the flesh-growth. She noticed the flooring directly under her face was...pulsing, as if a beating heart was inside. She did not have much time to feel squeamish, as she overheard talking.

"I heard guns shooting!" a man remarked, a woman slipping on the fleshy floor and falling down.

"...Ohhh! I hate this inconceivable change! Blood and body everywhere, disgusting! Did Dr. Lamb leave us? Did she go after the Lamb? I am better than any of this!" the woman complained, slapping a male Splicer to keep him away. "I'm sick of you, too!" she yelled, picking herself up.

"Whuh? Buh why, baby?" the male Splicer asked, receiving another slap in the face.

"Hey! Don't!" the male Splicer whined, then noticed someone rather misplaced. "Is that a Little Sister?"

The female Splicer turned her head and noticed Elizabeth. The two made eye contact. "Dressed like that, I am surprised no one raped you dead yet! Filthy little whore, bending over like that, you cannot be my daughter!" The Splicer raised a machine gun and opened fire, her male friend shooting a revolver.

Elizabeth rolled sideways, bullets whizzing around her, some thudding into the flesh-growth and popping blood out. Keeping her head low, she took cover behind a mound of flesh absorbing the gunfire.

"Hey! Stop shooting me! I didn't do anything!"

"We gotta sneaky girl, guys! This way! She might have ADAM!" the male Splicer shouted, and several more Splicers went to the scene.

"Come out from hiding, you little thief! Where are you, hmmmm?" The female Splicer casually walked towards Elizabeth's hiding spot, hips swaying, but then the Motorized Patriot ran to the scene and smashed her away. He looked quite broken, bolts and chunks missing, but he jogged forth, opening fire at the other Splicers, and they fired back at him.

Amidst the tension, Elizabeth slipped away, going down a hallway, echoes of combat behind her. Soon, the Motorized Patriot phased out of this reality, and the Splicers wondered what happened.

As Elizabeth ran, she heard a slight grinding noise, but ran around a corner. A yellow spotlight shone upon her. Elizabeth stopped and looked up, a Security Camera staring back at her. Its light turned red and an alarm sounded. Whirring angily, a Security Bot flew forth, going after Elizabeth.

"Does everything here want to kill me!?" Elizabeth darted off as bullets rained around her. "At least no one tried to shoot me in Columbia!" She did not know where to go or what to do, but the only solace she saw was some sort of vent. She jumped onto it, lifted herself, and fell into the hole.

Elizabeth's decent was rather noisy and clumsy, but she was safe in the ventilation shaft, feeling like a little girl hiding from big monsters. Bumping her head and knees, she kept crawling until she reached a comfy spot, lying against the side. Above her head was a fan, some light shining down from above, illuminating some of her face.

"At least nothing fleshy grows in here…" She sighed with relief.

Elizabeth rubbed her nose, then noticed her hand was red. She raised both hands into the limited light, seeing both covered with blood, yet her hands seemed uninjured. She looked down, seeing thick red marks under her shirt. She gasped.

"I've been shot." She had been pumping with so much adrenaline, she did not even feel the bullets. "Oh, no… Well, I can't just sit here…" She crawled through the venting, having no idea where to go or what to do.

Eventually, she saw an opening, and stuck her head out, blood leaking from her mouth. Fleshy growth illuminated another hallway, but a section had a short set of stairs descending into a flooded section. She squirmed out the vent and looked at herself. The red marks had grown quite a bit, blood trickling down her skirt. She twisted around to look at her back, seeing red marks there, too. It seemed that the bullets had gone straight through her tiny body.

"I'm going to die here, am I?" Her heart sank. She neared her hands together. No Tear yet.

Elizabeth wandered the place, little shoes tapping against the flesh-covered flooring. Occasionally, she tumbled upon a heart, liver, spleen, or even an eyeball in the walls, floor or ceiling. One eyeball on the wall even blinked at her.

"Um, Booker?" No reply. Elizabeth's shoulders dropped. "Booker, did you leave without me? I wouldn't blame you, but… I miss you."

Soon, Elizabeth found a Medical Station, the cross glowing underneath its layer of flesh. She weakly walked to it, then started ripping the coating of flesh off. Blood leaked out, and she grimaced at all the meat under her fingernails. Eventually, she removed enough flesh to operate the damn thing. It didn't work.

" _Ughh!_ What the hell…" Elizabeth crossed her arms in frustration. By chance, she saw something shiny in the floor. Kneeling, she plucked out a coin embedded in the flesh. It was heads up. "A Silver Eagle? No, something else. I hope this works…" It did, a Med Kit fell out. "Ohh, thanks God…"

Elizabeth did what she could, but there was only so much a Med Kit could do for multiple gunshot wounds. Amidst her work, Elizabeth heard grumbling and footfall. Sounded like a bunch of retards arguing incoherently, but Elizabeth could not understand. The arguing intensified, followed by thuds. The Splicers fought, and after brutish cusses and grunts, it seemed that several Splicers were knocked down.

"...I'm sick of this fuckin' shit!" a deep, bellowing voice complained, having a false British accent. A massive, apelike, bald man appeared, with disproportionately gigantic arms and torso, and a big belly. The hulking dashing chap had a broad jawline, and wore knuckle dusters.

All that moved was Elizabeth's blood.

"Hey there, lil' pup, aren't you the merry little bleedah, ain'tcha?" the Brute Splicer aggressively-seductively remarked as he approached the dainty lady. "You're not quite my type, pup, but I know wooatcha thinkinn'... Ohh, I'm having you, little girl, so come to poppa. This'll leave a real deep mark in the skin, ya duff bitch."

Elizabeth's blood curdled. She wasn't sure what was worse: his sweat-stained stenchy armpits, or his passive-aggressive sexual tone of voice. She felt a Tear coming, and conjured a Motorized Patriot.

"What the bloody _ffuck!_ " the Brute yelled.

"Fear judgement, unclean, unworthy sodomite!" the Patriot warned, crank gun ripping.

"I'LL RIP YOU APART, FUCKIN' TEAHOUSE DOLl!" The Brute moved like a gorilla, and to Elizabeth's surprise, he withstood the stream of bullets. He knocked aside the Patriot's Crank Gun, and the two exchanged mighty blows. To another of Elizabeth's surprise, the Brute actually smashed the Motorized Patriot apart! Its parts phased out of reality.

"Now, where were we, love? Oh, that's right… I'm smashing my cock up yer chicken ass and splitting ye in half... _C'm'ere!_ "

Elizabeth did the splits and rammed her Sky-Hook into the Brute's crotch.

" _OOOHHHH!_ "

The machinery whirred, rotary parts ripping through the Brute's pants and dashing out blood.

"OOOHH-WUH-UH- _WUH-UH-WUH-UH-WUH-WUH-UH-WUH-UH-UH-WUH_! I'll fuckin' ring yer neck, ya slimy little cunt!"

Elizabeth slipped around the Brute's massive arms, then swung her Sky-Hook into his crotch from behind, Sky-Hook screaming. The big boy scrunched up and hit the floor, letting off a massive groan.

"Or I'll be splitting you in half…" Elizabeth remarked, then ran away. "Huh, I'm a good nutcracker..."

The Brute bellowed in agony as the little thing scampered away, her adrenaline returning and numbing all pain and discomfort. Surprisingly, he gradually picked himself up.

"I'LL FUCKIN' BUST YOU OPEN! GIVE YOU TEN NEW CUNTS IN YOUR BODY! I'LL FUCKIN' FUCK YA TO DEATH!" He crawled with those elephantine arms of his.

Shoes tapping against the fleshy floor, Elizabeth wondered where to go. She ran around a corner and made her way down the next hallway. She saw double doors, but they were covered with so much Enaedonai, she could not wrench them open.

"FNNN-URRR! WHERE'D THAT LITTLE CUNT GO?" The Brute's heavy breathing and footfall became louder.

Elizabeth ran away some more, and felt a draft. She sighed with relief, seeing another vent in the wall. She put her Sky-Hook away.

"COME HERE!"

Elizabeth ran forth and jumped to the vent, lifting her puny arms and beginning to the climb into the vent.

"AHHH! YOU AIN'T GONNA GET AWAY FROM ME!" But she did. The Brute rammed his arm down the vent, rummaging around, but could not find her. "FUCKIN' DAMMIT!" The Brute began smashing the vent, each punch leaving a dent. "FUCKIN' DUMB BITCH!" He put his head into the vent, "I'LL FIND YOU YA SLIMY CUNT! I'LL RIP THIS PLACE APART AND SPLIT YOU WITH MY COCK! YA HEAR ME!? Ughhh-huh-huh-uh-huh…" The Brute covered his crotch and limped back.

Elizabeth reappeared, crawling backwards out the vent. She fell on the back of her head, not even concerned about the Brute. He was quite surprised, and then realized a fleshy monster squirmed out the vent, crawling over Elizabeth as she crawled backwards, following her until her head hit the floor.

The fleshy monster paused over Elizabeth, all ten feet and half a tonne posed over her, eyeless skull in front of her face. The beast's heavy breathing reverberated within its throat, and it drooled over the girl's forehead. The fleshy monster slowly cocked its head, then looked at the Brute Splicer. The monster inhaled sharply, then let off a slow, gurgling exhale. It slowly stood up, towering over the Brute.

"I ain't afraid of you, punk!" The Brute punched the fleshy monster in the gut, causing the monster to stagger with a big gasp. If his balls weren't busted open, the Brute Splicer would have fought better. Even after receiving knuckle dusters to the face multiple times, the fleshy monster did not need much effort to grab the big boy and slam him into the floor.

The monster clawed the Brute's big belly open, the Splicer kicking and wriggling, but unable to overpower the fleshy monster. The beast then curled its clawed fingers into the hole, and peeled the tissue apart. Guts popped out, the monster spreading the stomach open until its hands nearly reached the Brute's hips.

The fleshy monster rammed its arm elbow-deep into the Brute's stomach, knuckles bumping against the underside of the Brute's ribs. Blood leaking out the Brute's mouth, the monster pulled out an armful of intestines, then ripped the stomach open further. Snarling, the beast rammed both arms into the Brute's belly, grasping handfuls of innards and ripping out more organs: bean-shaped kidneys, floppy, gallbladder, wiggly pancreas, bloated stomach, and the huge fatty liver. The monster snapped its jaws over organs and crawled backwards, disembowelment the Brute further.

Elizabeth's bones felt like jelly at what she beheld. Never had she seen so much guts, several feet of intestines trailing along the fleshy floor.

Hissing, the beast crawled to the Brute, grasping his spinal cord, feeling the discs and poky parts. It pulled on the spine until it snapped. Ripping a section of spine out the pelvis, the monster looked at it, then tossed it over the shoulder. It landed near Elizabeth. The monster rammed its arms underneath the ribcage, and after some growling and cracking, wrenched the ribs asunder. It then pulled the lungs out, each hand gripping a lung, soft and wet. The beast's grip became so tight, the lungs mashed and popped.

Still not done yet, the fleshy monster grasped the Brute's hip bones, and after a hiss, literally ripped the pelvis off the remains of the torso, complete with a pair of legs. The fleshy monster stood upright and turned around to look at Elizabeth, holding the Brute's lower half.

Elizabeth never felt so scared in her life, shaking uncontrollably.

"Ughh-oww! Where did he go? Where did he go?" a retarded Splicer asked.

"If you keep talking like that, you won't get any ADAM! Leave, me, ALONE!" an angrier-sounding Splicer said.

"ADAM? Did you say ADAM?" a female Splicer asked.

Elizabeth and the fleshy monster looked down the hallway, seeing a group of Splicers led by a crazy-looking doctor.

"Now this...is incredible. He was ripped apart from the inside, but not by a failed teleport, but by the contagion...Nyeh-heh-heh-heh-heh! Reminds me of the toxic brats waking up during surgery..." the crazy doctor seemed quite pleased, but then paused as he glared at Elizabeth. "YEEEOOO _OOO_! You're not supposed to be here! Who created you, _filthy_ girl? Go get yourself cleaned! Now!" the Dr. Grossman demanded, but then lost interest and looked at the fleshy monster.

The mad doc was unphased by the butchery. "What the hell are you doing? Nurse! Get a mop and bucket or two! NNURRSE!" He angrily approached the fleshy monster. "You! Will! Listen-to-me, contagion! We know who's infected when their flesh regrows rapidly, you can't fool me! Contagion, get yourself OUT of my office! Before you spread your virus throughout The Family! I will be taking over your operation!"

When the Splicers opened fire, Elizabeth covered her head. The fleshy monster charged with a howl, leaping upon the mad doctor.

"UNN-FFFUCKING-BELIEVABLE! Nurse, get the biggest straightjacket for this little shit! He's outta control!" The doctor's bickering was promptly ended when the fleshy monster bit his jaw, and ripped it off. As bullets thudded the fleshy monster's body, it crushed the jawbone and teeth as if they were hard candies.

"I think we need more than a dentist!" one of the female Splicers remarked.

Elizabeth struggled to get up, the sounds of bullets, screaming, and ripping flesh echoing behind her. She ran across the Brute's guts, nearly slipping on them, and darted off as the monster's roar pierced her ears, followed by intense screaming of terror and agony.

"How the hell did that thing even fit in the vent!?" Elizabeth squeaked, then slipped, sliding a short distance along the fleshy floor. When she regained her footing, she saw someone crawling along the ceiling with hooks. He had quite a big, deformed grin.

"You were never part of the Family, were you?" the crawling man asked, having an exasperated, wheezing, high-pitched voice. "You're Lamb's little girl, aintcha? When I try to sleep, you come..." He began crying stupidly. "Stop looking at me! STOP IT! Why can't you stop!? Leave me alone!"

Elizabeth slipped her Sky-Hook back on, dodging the Crawler's leaping attack. She gave him a good whack on the head. He cried out, then swung his hooks sideways, but Elizabeth skipped out their way. He raised his arm to swing wide, so Elizabeth swung her Sky-Hook into the incoming fingers, breaking a few of them. The Crawler dropped a hook and screamed. Thinking about Booker, Elizabeth rammed her Sky-Hook into the Crawler's sternum, the rotaries ripping him open and dashing out blood.

"Hwoo-ahh!" Elizabeth exclaimed from fear. She never wanted to kill anyone, but here she was, feeling her Sky-Hook shaking as it tore the Crawler open. The rotaries clawed and dug into tissue, and she lost grip of the device. It cartwheeled across the Crawling's chest, and she spun with her device. Upon finishing the revoltuion, she bonked the crawler in the forehead and he fell over, head gushing blood. He hit the floor twitching and wheezing.

Elizabeth's heart stopped when she heard heavy breathing and footfall.

"That thing's coming…" she whispered. She ran past the Crawler as he moaned and cried, and then heard the fleshy monster begin devouring him alive. She kept running, hearing tormented scream after scream from the Crawler Splicer.

"Oh, thank God!" She opened a Tear and jumped in without looking…

...and ended up atop Eleanor, the tall brunette falling onto her back. Elizabeth landed on her knees, legs astradle of Eleanor's hips. Eleanor did not wear her helm, it was on the seat of the bathysphere. The two girls just stared at each other as the bathysphere swam. Elizabeth felt her groin tingle.

 _Well, this is embarrassing…_ Elizabeth had a feeling Eleanor read her thoughts.

"I had a feeling the floating light was a Tear... Uhh, you're covered in blood…are you alright, Elizabeth? Where's Booker?" Eleanor asked.

Elizabeth slid off Eleanor and sat on the seat, crossing her arms. She was glad blood hid her blushing.

Eleanor sat up, knees bending up until she could rest her elbows on them. She patiently waited, but Elizabeth did not reply, her eyes low and unblinking. Eleanor frowned and slightly tilted her head, and blew some hair away from her eye.

"Well?" Elizabeth seemed focused yet oblivious. "Elizabeth, are you staring at my crotch?"

"Oh, I'm… I've been shot several times." Eleanor's eye widened.

"What? Let me look." Eleanor got up and examined Elizabeth. Elizabeth's breathing slowed, she started shaking, and she tried not to grin. "Is something wrong, Elizabeth?" Elizabeth shook her head.

"Huh. You were shot multiple times, but I can't find any bullet holes."

"Wha-what?"

Eleanor put her fingers into a torn part of Elizabeth's blouse. Her fingernails did not find any hole, and caused the dainty girl to shiver.

Elizabeth put a hand over one of her wounds. Slipping her fingers into the torn fabric, her fingertips did not find the bullet hole that used to be there. She checked a few more spots, but, oddly enough, no bullet holes.

"What? That's...not possible. I had bullets pass through me, I…" She did not know what to say, eyes low. A few seconds passed, eyes still low. She noticed Eleanor frowning again. _Oh, she must think I'm staring at her..._

Eleanor stepped to the side, creating some distance. She crossed her arms, looking a bit grumpy.

"Where's Booker?" Elizabeth's heart and face sank.

"I...I don't know. I hope he's okay."


	40. Chapter 40 - Nowhere

The Lighthouse shook from explosives fired haphazardly up the stairs, destroying chunks of steps and hurling mutated crab-things asunder. Were it not for the Vox Beasts' rocketry and a summoned Patriot's Crank Gun, everyone would have probably already been eaten. Even when the monsters came up-close, the Beasts and Motorized Patriot beat them down, sometimes with an arm or claw or two clasped on them.

"The abominations, endless! But I am just as relentless!" the Patriot stated as he charged into a cluster of crab-mutants. He rammed his gun into their faces and shot their heads off, their chunks fluttering around.

"Zachary! Catch!" Pinkerton Elizabeth threw her friend a bottle of drinkable EVE.

One of the crab-like monsters became icebound. Left hand still fuming with dry ice, Zachary reloaded his revolver and fired once at the icy statue. It shattered into many parts. He looked around, and saw more and more of the mutated monsters scuttle down the walls and stairs. They hissed with frothy bubbles leaking out their mouths.

Sofia kept her hands over her ears, keeping her back to Zachary's as often as she could for him to protect her.

"You alright?" Zachary yelled as he finished off a mutant, Sofia nodding. She noticed the bloodied radio (the same one left behind for Eleanor) among dead mutants, and managed to get it while Zachary fended off the monsters.

Cindy screamed as she ran across the scene, the child nearly being shot several times, pincers snapping at her head, but the little thing avoided harm.

"Why isn't Daddy here now!?" the former Little Sister cried angrily.

Old Elizabeth caught the girl and pulled her up, firing her Broadsider at the swarm of foes. Cindy clutched her doll and the old gal, and saw several of the monsters crawl along the wall, whilst those on the floor occasionally leapt over one another, many shot dead mid-air before reaching their target.

"Behind you!" Cindy warned. Old Elizabeth felt a monster snap at her legs.

"Ow!" The old lady returned several rounds before able to free herself, blood leaking out her legs. Zachary cast Electrobolt, several monsters near old Elizabeth shaking, eyes targets for gunfire.

Devil's Kiss and Murderous Crows flew about wildly. The Fireman's iron-bound fists thudded against mutated flesh, and the Zealot's blade hacked others apart. His use of teleportation allowed him to avoid trouble. Whenever a crab mutant leapt upon the Fireman's back, the extreme heat forced it to get off, followed by a boot or gauntlet.

"Some ah'da ugliest sons a bitches I've seen!" one of the Beasts remarked as he pummeled a monster's face, busting it open and feeling its pincers tick and scrape against his helm.

"Dey kinda remoind me o' Daisy's face!" another said, knocking a crab back then launching a rocket at point blank, hurling several monsters back.

"That's really cute, Oisin!" Daisy yelled as Zachary's sniper rifle shot a monster dead mid-air just as it jumped. She turned her head in time to this dead thing flop at her.

Zachary, the Elizabeths, the Beasts, and Daisy fired their weapons as fast as they could, but soon ran out of ammo. The Beasts dropped their rocket-launching weapons and withdrew shotguns, whilst Zachary threw his empty rifle at the mutants then fired his revolver.

The Fireman, not needing any weapon, charged partly up the stairs to become the centre of attention, buying the others a little more time.

The Patriot was overwhelmed by numerous mutants, and they began to pick him apart. They were unable to do serious damage, but he soon phased out of reality prematurely mid-fight.

"Now!" Zachary yelled.

"There!" Pinkerton Elizabeth summoned supplies to phase in, whilst old Elizabeth summoned a Gun Automaton.

"Hoo! I'm getting it back!" old Elizabeth stated, Cindy cheering, but their joy was drowned out by violence.

"Zachary, here!" Pinkerton Elizabeth threw Zachary a bottle of drinkable EVE.

"Much obliged!" He guzzled down and threw a few Old Man Winters.

Instead of reloading their shotguns, the Beasts just grabbed new ones, double-barrelled, the others reloading their guns. Even Sofia got a double-action revolver to do her part in the fight, as ineffective as she was. Zachary noticed a few Crank Guns, the Vox Beasts slinging their shotguns over their shoulders and grabbing the Crank Guns. Zachary took the last one, and the four unleashed a mighty stream of bullets, mowing down dozens of monsters within seconds. The echoes were deafening.

Whilst the triggerhappy Zachary and Beasts bought everyone else some time, there was barely enough time for them to reload. It was not long until the Beasts and Zachary had to club, punch and kick into the wall of disfigured, crab-mutants, Zachary's use of Old Man Winter used to great effect. It was not long until the floor became littered with so much corpses and body parts, everyone nearly waded in them.

The Zealot unleashed a flock of Murderous Crows which promptly ate many mutants' eyes, much to their distress, leaving them as easy targets. The Zealot teleported outside the Lighthouse, atop the railings. He saw many crab mutants rising out the waters and scuttle into the Lighthouse like ants. Many more floated along the waves, but when the Zealot looked up, he sighed.

"The machines near..." The skyborne machinery had lowered drastically, many swayed or curled to and fro. A dozen or so slowly spiralled down the Rapture Lighthouse, and the machinery's screeching and creaking echoed. A few of the longest lengths dipped into the ocean.

Teleporting back inside, the Zealot landed atop a monster while driving his sword down its skull. He summoned a flock of Murderous Crows and began cutting up the mutants. Zachary and the Vox Beasts ran out of ammo for their Crank Guns, using them as clubs to create distance and then throwing them at the monsters. The Beasts withdrew their shotguns, whilst Zachary got his revolver.

Despite the mass slaughter, the mutants become so numerous and dense, everyone was practically face-to-face with them, clubbing with their guns while shooting point-blank. Old Elizabeth and Sofia, being the weakest combatants, received extra care from Zachary, who did everything to protect them with Plasmids and bullets.

After shooting down a few mutants, Daisy realized she was being swarmed. She shot through a few and jumped over another, and rejoined with the Beasts, Fireman, Zachary and the Zealot, where she stuck her carbine into the mutants' mouths and fired. Zachary's rifle got caught in the pincers and hands of a mutant, so he threw a Possession at it and took his gun back while the Possessed mutant turned and attacked its own kin, though it would not last long.

One of the crab-things leapt from the wall and landed on her back. The little black woman could not hold the weight and fell, feeling the monster's hands grip her neck, and pincers claw into her sides.

"Ahh! Shit!" Daisy kicked at the monster, but was too small to overpower it.

Pinkerton Elizabeth noticed Ms. Fitzgerald's trouble. The blue-eyed brunette aimed The Ambassador and fired just once, the shot hitting the crab mutant square in the head. It flopped over. Daisy crawled backwards as several more snapped and clawed at her. Zachary grabbed her arm and pulled her back, throwing Old Man Winter and freezing several monsters. The Fireman ran by, drop kicking through an icebound mutant and breaking it apart.

"Keep on coming! I'm still dying to burn you all!" The Fireman leapt into the horde of crabs and threw fireballs downwards, burning many monsters around him and keeping them busy.

"Do they just keep coming!?" Zachary, having ran out of ammo, used his rifle as a club in one hand, and a revolver in the other. The monsters attacked him, but his shields held up for now.

A monster jumped, extending its pincers and clawed hands. Zachary dropped his rifle, caught the monster mid-air, and body slammed the motherfucker into the floor, ramming his revolver down its throat and shooting. When he got up, he was surrounded by the crabs, with many more jumping over each other.

"Oh, shit!" He threw Devil's Kiss and fired all the chambers of his revolver, then felt the critters clawing him.

Most of the crabs lifted up, levitating from telekinesis, revealing that the Vox Beasts, the Fireman, Sofia, and Pinkerton Elizabeth lied on the floor. The levitated monsters writhed and snapped at the air, the Gun Automaton shooting at them.

Pinkerton Elizabeth and Sofia were quite cut up here and there. Grimacing hard, Elizabeth got up, noticing Eleanor now standing at the water's edge next to old Elizabeth, Cindy still in her arms.

"Eleanor! You came back!" Cindy squeaked. Eleanor's visor turned green.

"Of course, that's what Big Sisters are for!" Eleanor noticed Mother, all cut up and bleeding. Visor now red, Eleanor began throwing fireballs at the crabs, and used her psychokinesis to smash them together, creating much havoc. Once everyone else regained their senses, they opened fire again, the Fireman and Zealot using Vigors.

Sofia sat up with a groan, and spat out a mouthful of blood. Zachary ran to her, holding her by the shoulders and asking how she was, but Sofia raised a hand and picked herself up.

"I'm...alright, Zachary. I can exceed myself," she assured.

Eleanor felt guilty for feeling good to see Mother like that. _About damn time you got some scrapes and bruises..._

Bubbles appeared, and a bathysphere arose, splashing water. It's door opened, blue Elizabeth popping her head out.

"Come in, quick!" She beckoned.

"I'll hold them off, then swim after the bathysphere!" Eleanor yelled, keeping most of the crabs busy with her Plasmids.

One by one, everyone else entered the bathysphere while firing at the monsters, the Zealot teleporting in, and the Fireman entering last. The Fireman kept hurling Devil's Kiss out the bathysphere, helping Eleanor fry the mutants, but they just kept coming.

"Go! I'll follow in the water!"

"Eleanor!" Cindy cried.

The Fireman nodded, and closed the door, leaving Eleanor behind. The bathysphere descended.

Eleanor kept blasting fiery and telekinetic Plasmids at her enemies, but no matter how much she tried, they just kept coming. The entire room was filled with mutants, crawling over their fallen.

"Huh…fine. Your way you'll have…" Eleanor dove into the water, swimming after the bathysphere. _That black winged monster better not return…_

Down below, Rapture echoed with gunfire and screaming. Once it ended, Booker stepped around a corner, both hand cannons smoking, shields regenerating, Elizabeth's Broadsider holstered.

"A city underwater covered with growing meat is ridiculous enough, but the uglies who live down here...bigger lunatics than Comstock's followers. Elizabeth! You anywhere?" His heart dropped.

Booker's search led him to a pub of sorts. He saw a Splicer man and woman dancing casually, and left them alone. At least the counter had booze, so Booker snatched a bottle of whiskey and helped himself. He then noticed a blue bottle and took it.

"Drinkable EVE? It kind've looks like Salts... Well, bottom's up…" After that, Booker left the pub.

"Remember when we danced at Cohen's show?" the female Splicer dancer asked.

"Yeah, good times, wasn't it? Seeing Elizabeth and Booker get electrocuted was priceless. Hah hah! I wonder what happened to Cohen's painting, though..."

Sometime later, Booker headed down a hallway. After going around a corner, he saw something odd. There was a skinless man stuck on the wall, missing all his limbs, his belly bulbous and massive. His belly moved around, similarly to the polyp of the ADAM-infused plants earlier. The man's groin had a cavity, all his guts hanging out and writhing on their own. To make things odder, an ADAM-infused plant, apparently, had grown out his mouth.

"What...the hell?" Booker approached the grotesque figure. The ADAM-infused growing out body's mouth lifted, the polyp turning out to be a large eyeball staring back at Booker. "Uh...hi?" Where the man's limbs used to be, instead were fleshy masses that grew into the flesh-covered wall.

The plant blinked, then retracted down the body's throat. The man wheezed and began thrashing his head side to side wildly, his jaw bone and neck bones making cracking and popping sounds.

Booker had never heard screaming like this. It was as if several teenaged boys screamed at the same time with a vibrating effect that merged their voices. Whenever he finished a scream, the man would wheeze, sharply inhale, or wiggle, as if trying to rip himself out the wall while in agony.

The man's polyp-belly churned, and he screamed with greater pain. Blood leaked out his mouth, and he began smashing the back of his head into the wall, and his hanging intestines flicked about wildly. The polyp blasted out, a bellyful of blood gushing out behind it and hurling the rest of the man's innards onto the floor.

Booker stepped back to avoid getting blood on him. The wall-man's screaming did not stop, but now, every breath he took was just to scream more. The roots of the ADAM-infused plant slithered out, apparently having conjoined with veins and tendons. The roots wriggled, wrapping around the organs and pulling them back inside the host.

Booker raised an eyebrow at all that.

"I don't think even Elizabeth would find this interesting… Well, time to put you out of your misery." He fired into the wall-man's head. Although the screaming stopped, the intestines continued moving. The ADAM-infused plant emerged from the man's mouth, the eyeball staring. Booker shot it, too, and took his leave.

The belly-polyp on the floor rolled along on its own. Booker heard it and turned as he walked, unsure if he should shoot it, hearing something churning inside. The belly-polyp continued rolling. He gave the damn thing a good kick, watching it bounce off the wall and roll down the hallway. Once it stopped rolling, it regained itself and rolled after Booker again. So he shot it. It popped.

Erupting from within was something between a human fetus and a Sea Slug. It crawled rather quickly, umbilical cord wiggling along, head up and gnarly face breathing rapidly.

Booker just scratched his head.

"Hunh… Further proof of a godless universe." Once close enough, he stomped the creepy thing in the head, shoe splatting skull. Green goo gushed out. He heard some talking, so turned his head.

"Is that...ADAM? ADAM! Ahhh hah hah hah! I can't believe it! ADAM's here!" someone exclaimed, and sure enough, several Splicers soon appeared.

"I'M FIRST! OUTTA MY WAY!" A Brute Splicer shoved the others.

"He ain't takin' any of my ADAM! Hey! Get off me, ya dumb bitch" a Splicer yelled, aiming his machine gun and opening fire, the others shooting their pistols, and the Brute throwing an Enaedonai-covered crate at Booker, who jumped out of the way.

His shields lit up. Booker cast Murderous Crows, who ripped chunks of deformed flesh off disgusting faces. The Brute was untroubled, lumbering like an ape to Booker, so he threw a handful of Devil's Kiss at the big fellow. More screaming and bellowing.

Withdrawing both Hand Cannons, Booker fired them back at his attackers each time he took a step forwards, shields absorbing more returning fire. A Splicer's head exploded as if a rotten pumpkin, a few others shot dead through the heart, one receiving a bullet through the shin which blew it off.

"YOU OWE ME SOME SKIN, YOU SON OF A BITCH! THEN THEY'LL WATCH ME RIP YOUR ASS APART AND I'LL FUCK ALL THE WAY INTO YER STOMACH!"

The Brute threw a mighty punch, but Booker shot a few fingers off and slipped under the incoming arm. He rammed one Hand Cannon into the Brute's knee and fired, blasting the kneecap asunder. The Brute screamed as he fell to one knee, throwing a punch that shattered Booker's shields and hurt him. Booker pistol whipped him in the balls, stunning the bellowing bull.

Booker quickly wrapped his arms around the Brute's legs while driving his shoulder into the Brute's midsection. The big boy fell onto his back, Booker ending up atop him. Just as the Brute raised his arms, Booker discharged the last chambers of his Hand Cannons into the Brute's face. The head erupted, bursting blood and brains everywhere. Booker got up while holstering his Hand Cannons, blood leaking down his front.

"You enjoy that?" Booker asked casually as he stepped over the Brute, shields recharging. His search continued.

A while later, he heard mechanical noises. He saw a few flesh-covered Security Cameras here and there, but the lenses were so overgrown, they could not detect anything. Even the occasional Turret was so overgrown with Enaedonai, that the engines were clogged. The fleshy growth gradually became thicker, and he could clearly see thicker veins, beating hearts, pumping lungs, and various internal organs growing out the fleshy walls.

A big fleshy arm burst out the wall, Booker gasping. The fleshy appendage clawed at Booker, blows eating away his shields, so he put his Sky-Hook on and clubbed the arm aside. The arm shook, then the palm split open, an eyeball with a faint yellow aura appearing, making tuning and static sounds.

" _Fnnh!_ " Booker clutched his head, a nosebleed on its way.

Leaning backwards to avoid the arm's swipe, Booker rammed his Sky-Hooker into the arm's eyeball, the machine wheezing as the rotary ripped the palm apart. The arm tried to escape, but Booker grabbed it with his free hand, Sky-Hook ripping the hand apart. The rotaries chewed away down the wrist, and to Booker's surprise, he saw a brain and heart. At that, the arm became limp. Booker threw it down.

"Teach you to mess with me…" He felt the floor vibrating, and then several more fleshy arms burst out the walls and ceiling, varying in size and length. "Ugh...I ain't got time for this!" More and more arms emerged from the walls, floor, and ceiling. Booker cast Murderous Crows to devour the arms and keep them busy while he ran through the forest of skinless limbs, knocking them aside with his Sky-Hook.

Bursting out the floor was a skinless, twisted face on the end of a seven-foot neck. The face shot at Booker, jagged teeth extending, so he swung his Sky-Hook across its chin and cracked its jaw, some teeth flying out, too. The head twitched but lunged after Booker as he ran past it, but could not bite him with a broken mouth.

As the Murderous Crows feasted, Booker saw lights and heard whirring down the hallway.

"That an elevator? Hmm...since the lower floors are flooded, Elizabeth might of went up." Reaching the elevator, Booker figured out how to work the lift. He looked back, seeing some arms squirming out the walls then writhing across the floor. He checked the elevator. "C'mon, hurry up."

After the Murderous Crows dissipated, the elevator beeped, and the doors opened, ripping apart a thin layer of Enaedonai. Inside was red but not too fleshy, Booker sighing with relief. Up he went.

Meanwhile, the bathysphere approached Rapture, Cindy standing before the big glass door, clutching Little Daddy. The armoured Vox stood, staring through the glass and observing the underwater city.

They saw what Booker and blue Elizabeth had seen: the fleshy growth, giant organs, tendons and lengths of flesh growing from building to building, the strange lights, the remains of Rapture… Though, the abyssal monster was not visible.

Sofia was sitting next to Zachary, working the radio. Amidst static, she found some distorted voices, and continued tuning the radio.

"Back to Rapture, hunh, Booker?" Pinkerton Elizabeth remarked, Zachary making a halfhearted chuckle.

"Yeah. You won't get me killed this time, right?"

"Right." She made an evil face with a wicked grin. Zachary actually got a chuckle at that, and the Pinkerton smiled sweetly. _It's so rare to see him smile..._

"Eugh...all that fleshy matter…disgusting," old Elizabeth croaked.

"But what the hell is all a' it, really?" Daisy asked, poking the fleshy floor with her carbine.

"Enaedonai," blue Elizabeth answered. "That's what this...thing...told me. But I wonder where that huge monster with four eyes is..."

"What happened to you, anyway? Where's Booker?" Pinkerton Elizabeth asked.

"After Booker and I fell into the giant skull monster, we were saved from drowning by this...limbless creature. Called himself Tongue. But…" Elizabeth's face reddened, "we got separated. I have no idea where Booker is, but I found Eleanor after going through a Tear."

"He's me, he'll be alright. But...where the hell did all this...stuff...come from?" Zachary asked, scanning the fleshy growth all around. Elizabeth shrugged.

"Eleanor told me she figured that it grew from the abyss. Something to do about experiments by Ms. Lamb and Dr. Alexander...after his laboratory plunged into said abyss."

Sofia briefly raised her eyebrows at the mention of her, but said nothing.

"What about those sky-machines? I saw them reaching the lighthouse and ocean," the Zealot said. The Pinkerton shrugged again.

"They can only come from another world. When I met Spirry, he could control machines, psychokinetically, I suppose. Considering how much machinery there is, well, that's quite a massive Tear. Crazy to imagine a Tear gradually swallowing an entire planet." She took a breath. "Just how many people do you think the machines and those meaty monsters killed by now? Hundreds of thousands? Millions? A billion? Oh God, I can only imagine how much horror the world must be going through... And Rapture is now the only reason we are still alive."

The thought of a mechanical apocalypse was unnerving. Cindy held Little Daddy in both arms against her chest, and lowered her chin on his little head.

"Don't worry, Little Daddy, I'll keep you safe…" Cindy whispered.

"Then your leap of faith to comin' here better work," Daisy remarked.

"We had no other choice, really," Zachary said.

"A choice is better than none," blue Elizabeth quietly commented to herself.

"It will. I know I've seen it work," Pinkerton Elizabeth assured, then noticed the Zealot poking Enaedonai with his sword.

"It is all hellspawn," the Zealot assured. Pinkerton Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "Just you wait. When we get to the bottom of this, there will be tortured souls, infernal machines, and fiery doom." Zachary gave the Zealot a weird look.

"I don't think even I had the creativity for that kind of hell…" Zachary mumbled, still unwilling to admit he was Father Comstock.

"I can add that Eleanor described its origins as evolving from the Luminescent Biomass, but...the thing...said Spirry referred to it as De Profundis," blue Elizabeth explained, looking up in thought.

"Spirry?" old Elizabeth asked.

"You spoke with him?" Pinkerton Elizabeth asked.

"Well, he somehow had his voice within our...ride. His voice hurt our heads. He said something about being entitled to what a man bleeds for. There was this giant monster, bigger than the one climbing the sky-machines. Spirry's voice said it was _Apocata_ , or something like that. An actual body being a living city of Tears. A giant monster behind Rapture."

Everyone except Sofia seemed surprise.

"Sofia...know anything about this?" Zachary asked.

"Ask yourself, Zachary...if I did, I would have explained it by now."

"Huh. I bet the hunt for Spirry will lead us into his city of Tears."

"Eleanor!" Cindy suddenly cheered, everyone looking at her. Eleanor swam in front of the bathysphere and placed her hand on the glass. She waved, Cindy waved back, then Eleanor swam off like a dolphin. Cindy chuckled.

The radio made noises. Sofia tuned the radio a bit more. Men with British accents sounded.

"...Yessir, a bathysphere is on its way."

"How is that possible? Nobody knows about this lighthouse, unless they are Splicers from elsewhere. Regardless, those poor fools are in for quite a hellish surprise."

Zachary grabbed the radio, "Hello? Can you hear me? We mean no harm. We're just trying to get to the bottom of this." Nothing. "Damn radio."

Cindy squeaked from fright as a giant Sea Slug swam by, human-shaped face letting off a bellowing moan. It looked up just as it turned.

"Uh-oh, it's swimming straight for us…" blue Elizabeth said. Everyone braced themselves. The giant Sea Slug moaned again.

"Aw, shit. It better not break the glass..." Daisy whined, then the Sea Slug rammed its head into the base of the bathysphere, causing it bounce. Everyone lost balance and rolled around a bit, but the bathysphere seemed alright.

"Everyone alright?" Zachary asked once the bathysphere regained its balance.

"Yes, I'm fine. Are you okay?" blue Elizabeth said, putting her hand on old Elizabeth's shoulder. The old gal nodded.

The bathysphere approached the passageway leading into the Welcome Centre.

"Baxter, take what's left of your squad to the Welcome Centre. Fire and movement. Stay alive, commandos."

"Hey! Can you hear me?" Zachary called in the radio, but there was nothing. "Dumb radio."

The bathysphere entered the horizontal passageway, immense lengths of fleshy growth swaying around them.

ALL GOOD THINGS

OF THIS EARTH

FLOW

INTO THE CITY

The various advertisements within the vertical passageway were covered with fleshy growth. Eventually, the ride reached the Welcome Centre, quite illuminated by Enaedonai. Even the glass window at the end of the chamber was covered with the growing flesh.

The Zealot teleported out the bathysphere while the Fireman opened the door. Old Elizabeth grabbed Cindy, and everyone exited the bathysphere. The Vox, Pinkerton Elizabeth, and Zachary noticed and examine piles of bullet shells here and there.

".30 caliber rounds?" Zachary asked.

"They should be .45," the Pinkerton commented.

"Each pile is at least twenty rounds. No way anyone could shoot a pistol that fast. These aren't from Tommy guns." Zachary knelt, taking a closer look at the shells. "Looks like whoever used to be here were caught off-guard. Fired at multiple directions."

"I don't see any bodies, though," Pinkerton Elizabeth remarked.

At first, things kept quiet, but gunfire erupted further into Rapture. The Fireman's gauntlets ignited and he trudged forth. As everyone went forth, they saw more and more piles of empty shells.

Everyone ascended some stairs and regrouped with the Zealot, who jumped atop a stack of flesh-covered crates and unleashed Murder of Crows.

The Murderous Crows flushed out a score of Splicers, who began shooting machine guns. These Splicers were horrible to look at, looking like giant grubs merged into people, giving them the appearance of a two-headed parasitic monster with proboscises entering the human host's skull. The legs of the human half merged with the legs on the insect.

"Scary! Scary! Scary, scary!" Cindy squeaked. Old Elizabeth held her tighter and comforted her.

The Vox fired back, Beasts using shotguns (as they ran out of rocketry in the previous fight), Fireman throwing fireballs, Zealot teleporting behind Grub Mutants and chopping them open.

"An' I thought them crabs were ugly!" Daisy exclaimed, leaning out of cover to shoot her carbine. Sofia knelt beside Daisy, and fired at the enemy as well.

The Vox Beasts and Fireman charged, armours resisting bullets. Once the armoured Vox got close enough, the giant grubs swiped their immense forelegs at them, but how could they ever hope to pierce metal armour? The Beasts beat down the Grub Mutants, stomped upon them, then rammed their shotguns into eyeballs and fired heads open, splatting bug paste and blood everywhere.

"Come into the flame, insects!" the Fireman screamed, gauntlets dripping embers, then throwing Devil's Kiss pointblank into the horde of ghastly monsters. He punched one grub in its giant head, and the parasite screeched while rearing, ripping its proboscises out its host's head while he fired point-blank into the Fireman. Putting the monster alight caused it to fall over, insect-legs flicking. The Fireman fought wildly, flailing his arms, legs, and head while hurling Devil's Kiss, essentially weaponizing his armour. "I want to hear bug guts sizzle! Just burn! Please, BURRRN!"

The Zealot kept teleporting around, slicing the Grub Mutants' backsides and limbs whilst his Murderous Crows pecked their eyes out. Whenever the grubs lunged their bug-legs at him, he swung his sword into the incoming limbs, cutting them off. He also chopped through the proboscises and stabbed into grub-eyes, anything to maximise pain and injury.

Zachary's shields flickered up when he engaged the enemy, but he kept firing back at them. Pinkerton Elizabeth knelt and shot one of the Grub Mutants dead just as it leapt at her, flopping dead on the floor.

The other Elizabeths kept their heads low, taking cover behind crates. Blue Elizabeth summoned cover for Zachary, but his shields shattered anyways, and he fell over with a grunt.

"Zachary!" young Elizabeth cried, running over to him as the gunfight intensified.

Pinkerton Elizabeth sensed a Tear and summoned a Mosquito, which joined the fray.

"Dammit! I was hoping for a Patriot… Elizabeth! Keep your head down!" the Pinkerton shouted, old Elizabeth summoning a Gun Automaton to provide Zachary cover fire.

"Zachary, stay with me!"

He struggled to stay conscious, everything gray and flashing, but young Elizabeth worked her medical abilities to treat him. Scuttling behind her was some sort of giant big with humans arms, human legs sticking out the back of its hind legs, about the size of a Big Daddy. The Monster Bug wielded a machine gun, fly-face cocking side to side as bullets bounced off its exoskeleton.

Zachary raised his revolver over Elizabeth's shoulder, and fired at the Monster Bug's ugly face. Elizabeth covered her ears and leaned into Zachary. The Monster Bug raised its machine gun and opened fire, Zachary rolling around Elizabeth as shields regenerated just enough to block some bullets. As he finished his roll, he threw Old Man Winter at the beastly bug. One of the Vox Beasts swung his shotgun two-handed, shattering the Monster Bug's leg and it fell over. A shot across its face caused it to roll onto its back, twitching.

More screeching echoed. Perhaps a dozen more Grub Mutants and several Monster Bugs approached the scene.

"Get back! Too many of them!" Daisy yelled, the Beasts' and Fireman's armours clearly damaged, the Fireman smoking and flaming through holes.

Zachary threw a Possession trap overhead the Vox. It erupted, affecting a score of the mutants and causing them to fight their own. This gave the Vox the break they needed, the Zealot teleporting behind cover while the summoned Mosquito and Gun Automaton picked off a few more creatures.

"This place just keeps gettin' crazier and crazier!" Daisy exclaimed while reloading her carbine.

Whilst the Possessed insectoid Splicers caused havoc, everyone else took the advantage to maximise damage before the enemy regained their senses. More fireballs arched, exploding into the horde of monstrous bugs. Sofia, Zachary, and the Elizabeths turned their heads, seeing Eleanor running to the scene, suit dripping with water, visor beaming red.

Eleanor unleashed a wave of telekinetic power, blasting a score of monsters back, then fried them up with the Fireman, even the Possessed monsters. Within seconds, the combined use of Plasmids, Vigors and bullets decimated the insectoid mutants, leaving most dead, in chunks, or twitching. The Mosquito and Gun Automaton soon phased out of reality. The few remaining dying or incapacitated bug Splicers were finished off. The fight was over, and everyone relaxed, going out of cover.

"Rapture has definitely changed quite a bit!" Eleanor exclaimed, visor green.

"Excuse me, mister, let me help you…" blue Elizabeth said, stepping to the Fireman, who was rather leaky and overheating. She used her powers to revert his suit into its past form.

"I was actually looking forward to blowing up." His comment surprised Elizabeth.

"That's...hey, can you do that for me, too?" a Beast asked.

"Yeah, just give me some time..."

"Someone's coming!" Eleanor warned, helmet turning yellow, and everyone got ready. To her surprise, eight marines appeared, their coats and uniforms rather messy and torn. The marines raised their L1A1 rifles at the odd newcomers.

"Put your guns down! Now!" the squad leader barked, though the Vox and Zachary did not obey, the Fireman's hands engulfing in flames, and the Zealot's crows perching on his shoulders.

"We ain't here to take orders from ya. Ya'll don't stand a chance," Daisy warned.

"You're the ones who should be putting their guns down," Zachary commented.

"Please don't fight…" blue Elizabeth whispered.

The marines were unphased, gripping their rifles and ready for some more violence.

Eleanor suddenly teleported between the two groups, hands raised.

"Wait! Stop!" she yelled, getting everyone's attention. She teleported again, reappearing in front of the squad leader, who slightly reared, his men aiming at Eleanor. "Nobody shoot! We're on the same side!" She turned to face the Vox. "Let's all just keep our weapons down. We're not Splicers. We can work together. We _have_ to work together to survive."

At that, everyone lowered their weapons. The marines remained suspicious.

"Alright...who the hell are ya, Ms.?" the sergeant asked.

"I'm Eleanor. We're… Well, as you have obviously noticed, Rapture is quite unlike the surface. Explain everything my mother and I will, and any questions we will answer. But first, take us to your comrades, now.

After a couple seconds of silence, the squad leader lowered his rifle.

"Quite unlike the surface indeed. Nothing in Operation Banner could even begin to prepare us for this underwater hellhole."

One of the marine's radio tuned in, the radio Sofia had catching the signal as well.

"Baxter, status report!"

The squad leader gestured to one of his men.

The signaler took his radio. "Lieutenant, we found them after a fierce gunfight with Splicers, they are not hostile. We have no casualties. Returning to HQ with 'em."

"You better move it, a train is on its way."

 _Their HQ must be in the research labs. Good. We'll board the train soon enough. Just need to explain everything to these commandos..._ Eleanor thought to herself.

Eleanor was rather impressed by the marines, as they had killed a few dozen bug-mutants to reach the Welcome Centre. Going deeper into the Welcome Centre, the Gatherer's Garden voice sounded, oblivious to the fleshy growth everywhere. There were also a few groups of dead Splicers here and there, no match for elite soldiers with modern weaponry.

"I know Rapture very well. Follow me, I know the fastest route to Arcadia," Eleanor said.

"Stay back, Ms.," a marine said.

Eleanor's hands lit up with large fireballs as she walked ahead of the marines. "I can handle myself, sir."

The commandos let Eleanor lead the party.

Heading towards Arcadia was not too difficult, with previous bathyspheres remaining used for transportation, Eleanor able to bypass the genetic code by connecting with The Thinker. Oddly enough, Eleanor noticed that some sections of Rapture seemed to have duplicated or were split by immense Tears. At times, it was as if some Tears forced everyone to loophole at random sections of Rapture.

With so many people, they needed two trips per bathysphere to get everyone to the next locale. Coincidentally, the bathysphere crossed paths with another, the submersibles almost colliding. The other bathysphere turned out to be Porter's, and inside, standing behind the window, was a Big Sister.

Eventually, the Elizabeths figured out how to stop the Tears from loopholing. They did this by opening new Tears inside the loopholing Tears. As always, the Tears did not actually send them to another world, but all Tears seemed to be stuck in this world.

When not in bathyspheres, with so many guns and Plasmids ready, the groups of Splicers Eleanor's party met had no chance. The Splicers did not have enough time to say anything to Sofia, and even if they did recognize her, she made no attempt at communication. Sometimes, the regular Splicers stumbled upon were fighting bug mutants, though everything in the way was killed.

A score of Security Bots occasionally flew by, shooting the Splicers and mutants. The bots would then fly off, seeking out more foes to kill. The bots' behaviour surprised the marines, who surely had to shoot other bots down once in a while. Eleanor's bond with The Thinker seemed to allow her to connect to robotics and activate them on her side with vastly improved AI.

Everyone who were able took the dead Splicers' guns. Whenever more ammo was needed, Eleanor would use her telekinesis to rip away the flesh growing over El Ammo Banditos, then break the vending machines open. The Elizabeths summoned supplies as well, allowing the Vox Beasts to resupply with appropriate rocketry for their arsenal.

Occasionally, the Elizabeths noticed sections of flesh-covered architecture with auras, some other auras floating in the air, but said nothing, even when everyone past through the auras. After passing some narrow cave-like passages, they reached the Tea Garden. Even the trees and ferns were covered with Enaedonai, giving the entire place a rather nightmarish appearance.

While the Pinkerton looked up at a fleshy tree, an eyeball opened and blinked at her. She quivered. She turned her head, and saw the Zealot stab another eyeball that appeared. A sword stabbing into a giant eyeball caused Elizabeth to grimace.

"Can we please rest for a while? My feet and knees really hurt…" old Elizabeth complained, putting Cindy down. The child scurried off to explore. "Cindy!"

"Don't go too far, kiddo," Zachary called.

"I know!" Cindy assured.

Everyone else stopped, but the marines and Vox kept their guard up. The marines often looked at the Fireman, wondering what was up with him.

"Are you...on fire?" one of the marines asked. The Fireman started clubbing his gauntlets against his helm.

"It burns! It burns! It burns! It burns _so_ much! If only Comstock could be put in this suit!"

"Columbia is already destroyed, y'know…" Daisy remarked. The Fireman looked at her.

"I still want to burn _everything_!"

Cindy's exploration led her to Waterfall Grotto. Amidst the corridors and architecture, she saw a vent.

"Oo, a hidey hole. Haven't been in one of those for forever!" She scampered to the vent and mounted the bottom part, and jumped. She little hands clenched the edge of the hole, but the Enaedonai caused her fingers to slip. After several tries, she gave up to look around elsewhere.

Cindy waddled down some flesh-covered wooden paths and looked down at the waterwheel, save that all the water was blood.

"I'd like to play on that, but…" She heard old Elizabeth calling her name. "Coming, little mama!" She was about to run along, but then heard something. "Sounds like...a bee! _Bzzzizzz-zih-zih-zih-zzz_!" She ran around a corner and found a large Tear dropping blood along its rim.

The bleeding Tear revealed a scene of hanging mechanical lengths, many gently swaying. Walking through them was a man, who stopped, then looked back at Cindy with an eyeless face.

"Oh! Um…" Cindy paused from fear. Michael tilted his head, but did nothing. He looked forwards as loud footfall and heavy breathing sounded.

Michael spread his arms slightly and smiled.

"Surely, after all this time, you would realize this has more to do with what I have become, rather than what I once was," Michael commented, blood leaking out his eyes as usual. A guttural grunt sounded further around the Tear, but Cindy could not see what it was. "After all, if the laws of biology apply to the universe, then power is not limited to girls named Elizabeth. So long as a mind is connected to the laws of physics, mutations will occur."

"You fucking grub," Spirry's voice grumbled, "I thought I killed you. You and those twins just keep coming back…"

" _Natus in morte_ , Mikha'el. You entrapped the Luteces, but you cannot enchain me." Michael lifted his chin, and many of the mechanical lengths in front of him whipped forth, followed by ripping noises and a growl. Michael clasped his hands behind his back and took a few steps to the Tear, but kept looking sideways. "There are ways to break rules, even yours. When I caused the girl's mother to be summoned, I learned all I needed to know of Tears and the chaos of life and death. I will come back always, until I finish what I want."

By the sounds of it, Spirry was ripping the mechanical lengths out himself, but the forest of machines kept him away from Michael.

Cindy just stood where she stood, and hugged her doll. She listened to the rather incoherent discussion. It seemed that Spirry and Michael spoke about what they wanted to talk about, rather than develop a conversation properly. Almost as if Spirry spoke to himself through two different bodies.

"Eleanor has arrived. Her presence will be the catalyst of your destruction. Just because you break rules, does not mean you change the constances."

" _Intus mens, vos omnes contra omnis_ … You have no control of yourself or the many versions of yourself...forever trapped in eternal conflict amidst the worlds. A bigger mess than Mr. DeWitt." Michael walked back and forth while gesticulating, "but...I will continue absorbing your drives and memories, and the girls' drives and memories, until all your minds are empty. No matter how many worlds you destroy...once I have total control of Tears, everything you have done will account for nothing. You, and all your versions, will have never even existed…gone forever. And everything else will merge, and finish the synchronization, without you."

"That will result in your own annihilation as well," Spirry warned. "You are still part of me. You will never change that."

"I know. But I am also part of _him,_ and _his_ rules do not apply to you. Only a part of me will be destroyed, but it is a suitable sacrifice to live the reality I want. That is...to live the reality my surviving self desires."

"A reality I will make sure the three of you will never see." When Spirry said that, Michael paused, and looked at him.

"If this is something that can be stopped, then try to stop it."

"You are limited to the power you absorbed. I am not. What is perinormal cannot supercede what is paranormal."

"The Luteces failed. Elizabeth failed. Eleanor failed. You failed. No one can break your rules better than me."

"The constance of rule-breaking also applies to Eleanor. She will come," Spirry said, sounding like he was almost free.

Michael stopped, clasped his hands behind his back, and faced the Tear. Cindy blinked innocently.

"I know. Although you bonded with her, you will be the cause of her death. You will inevitably rip her guts out and devour her. That is why I will kill her before she dies because of you, and destroy that constance before it happens. _Non me constringis cupivisset_. _Nyeh-heh-heh_ -heh heh heh hehh he _hhh_!"

Spirry broke free and growled, and Michael simply stepped through the Tear. It closed behind him, the many machines screeching and swinging like crazy. Michael pat Cindy on the head, smiled, and he walked off.

"Cindy! Can you hear me? Where are you?" old Elizabeth's voice echoed.

"Coming!" Cindy ran off.

"There you are! Don't scare me like that! C'mon, let's go back to the others…" The old gal held Cindy's hand, and they walked together.

Everyone moved on, towards Rolling Hills. A Tear walled across the entire space, revealing that inside was lush and green; Enaedonai did not grow beyond the Tear. The marines walked through the Tear without thinking.

"Huh...it's like this Tear only partly affects the world…" Pinkerton Elizabeth commented.

"I was about to say the same time," blue Elizabeth said.

Old Elizabeth sighed with relief, "glad we don't have to walk in meat anymore."

"Yeah, same," Zachary said.

"Oh? I found it...fascinating," blue Elizabeth commented.

"Feel free to go back there," the Pinkerton remarked, but her other counterpart decided not to.

It was not long until another group of British marines went through the trees, rather surprised at the newcomers' appearances.

"Radio Mortimer that we're here," the squad leader instructed his signaller, who obeyed.

"Sgt. Fraser, what did you find in the train?" the lieutenant's voice asked.

One of the marines from the other group took his own radio, "Nothing, the train's empty. There's just big bloody footprints inside."

"That train will take us to the facilities that probably created all of this," Eleanor said, then looked at the signaller, "tell your lieutenant my mother and I can explain everything we know."

"Our...new friends seem to know things about Rapture we do not."

"Bring them immediately."

"Yessir. Right this way, people."

Everyone headed towards the Research Laboratories, where Langford once worked. Blue Elizabeth was quite curious about the flesh-covered vegetation, though the Vox and other gunslinging types remained cautious.

"Don't ya just kinda wanna shoot dem eyes an' hearts poppin' out?" a Vox Beast remarked.

"It's best to not attract any more attention," a marine remarked.

Eventually, they reached the offices, though Enaedonai still grew everywhere. Various marines stood on guard here and there, a few signallers sitting on flesh-covered chairs and working their radios on flesh-covered tables to chat with other squads elsewhere. A few marines smoked.

Eleanor took her helmet off, carrying it under her arm. On the bright side, there were no leaks anywhere, Enaedonai having sealed them. Eleanor noticed the Vita-Chamber, still working. Her shoulders and chin lowered. _If only..._

"You and your mother will be coming with us," the squad leader said to Eleanor. "The rest of you, stay behind and keep an eye out."

After passing through the next door, ascending stairs, and going through a glass tunnel, Eleanor, Mother, and the squad leader reached Langford's office. Curiously enough, Enaedonai did not grow in the office, but blood stains covered the architecture and furniture. Inside, a few marines sat at a table, discussing plans while examining papers and maps.

"Eleanor? Is that you?" a woman asked as she stepped through the double doors.

"Hm?" Eleanor's face filled with surprise when Brigid Tenenbaum hugged her.

"Oh! Child, is so good to see you!"

Eleanor returned with a one-armed hug, smiling, "nice to see you, too. I thought you died."

"I thought exactly the same." When they finished their hug, Brigid's face loosened.

"What happened to your eye, child?" Tenenbaum asked.

"I got shot in the face."

"You survived being shot in the face?"

Eleanor nodded, then noticed that Mother had a rather stern face, arms crossed.

"Oh, you," Brigid remarked, she and Sofia not glad to see each other. Mother took a step closer to Brigid.

"She is _not_ your daughter." Sofia's words and stare were cold. Brigid frowned.

"If only you had a heart, Dr. Lamb..." Ms. Tenenbaum remarked.

"Ladies," the squad leader interrupted, "come in."

Inside, the lieutenant gestured the ladies to sit.

"Tell us everything."

"I'll paraphrase. Then go to the train we must, before it's too late," Eleanor said. Once she sat, she rest her helmet on her lap.

"What happened to your eye?" the lieutenant asked, rather changing the subject.

"I got shot in the face."

"You survived being shot in the face?"

Eleanor nodded.

"Let us tell you what we know, now…"

The explanation went well enough. Eleanor and Sofia spoke their viewpoints of Rapture's history involving themselves, Brigid adding a little here and there.

"Alright. That's...not what I was expecting," the lieutenant remarked.

"This nightmare truly does not want to end," Brigid lamented. "When The Thinker told us what would happen, Porter and I contacted the British military..."

"That was our only clue before we were sent to investigate this place," the lieutenant said. "After the 41 Commando entered Rapture via Porter's bathysphere, shit hit the fan really hard. From what I've heard in the radio, the fleet was sunk by some underwater force. Our battalion nearly got wiped out by Splicers, we had no idea what waited for us. We are all that's left."

"How many times must I return here to finally end the Rapture Nightmare?" Brigid asked herself.

"This time, Tenenbaum, it's not your fault. What do you know of the Luminescent Biomass?" Eleanor asked.

"I think it was the source of the Sea Slugs' evolution."

"Did anyone in Rapture ever investigate?"

"Not that I know of."

"Mother, did you?" Sofia shook her head.

"That Luminescent Biomass is at least partly responsible for everything that's happened. We'll find more clues in Fontaine Futuristics, I just know it. I already sent the train from there to Arcadia."

"Splicers everywhere!" a voice shouted through the radio, followed by heavy gunfire. The lieutenant grabbed the radio and changed channels. "Dammit! They got Le Roux!"

"No man gets left behind! Get him and get out of there!" the lieutenant yelled. The sounds of Security Bots and an alarm went through the radio.

"Thinker's sending bots to help us! Don't shoot them!" Porter's voice sounded in the background of the comchatter. "To the Computer Core! We can escape with my bathysphere!"

"We need to get going, now! Use the train to get to Fontaine Futuristics! I'll meet you there!" Eleanor put her helmet on, then teleported, the marines quite surprised when she did that!

Eleanor teleported outside into the waters, then swam towards Minerva's Den, visor yellow. After teleporting a few more times, she appeared in the air, next to the Thinker's core, hearing the electricity and humming of the machine. As she fell, her visor turned red and she drove both feet downwards into a Splicer's head, amplifying her fall with a powerful gravitational pull. The force pinned the Splicer against the floor with a broken neck.

To Eleanor's surprise, the Computer Core was unaffected by Enaedonai. She hurled fireballs at the horde of Splicers around her, Security Bots flying overhead and showering the freaks with bullets. But there was something wrong with these Splicers. They were all naked and skinless, with elongated limbs and necks, and enlarged heads. Their chests protracted with every heartbeat. They appeared to be something between a Splicer and a fleshy monster, their eyes bloodshot and fierce, eyelids, cheeks and lips absent. Although they tended to crawl on all fours, they still wielded various guns, firing while they crawled, shooting up at the marines who were upstairs and keeping a defensive position. Eleanor saw one of the marines get shot in the forehead and fall limply. Another marine was shot in the chest and slumped over, but continued firing at his attackers.

 _Fuck! I'm too late! I have to fight quickly!_

Eleanor unleashed as much Plasmids as she could, blasting away a score of fleshy Splicers, but more and more just kept crawling. Amidst the fight, one of the fleshy Splicers leapt at Eleanor. She drove her needle clean through his sternum, catching him mid-air. Impaled, he writhed and clawed at Eleanor. With her free hand, she pulled his Tommy gun out his grasp and fired several rounds into his skull. She threw his body into a few other freaks and fired the Tommy gun in one hand while she used Plasmids with the other. Once her Tommy gun ran out of bullets, she threw it at the freaks.

Elsewhere, an Incinerate was cast.

 _Who cast that!?_

An engulfed marine screamed and writhed, and was promptly shot dead by Splicers who had ran up the stairs. A grenade was thrown, explosion shredding the Splicers open.

Eleanor sidestepped, one of the Splicers extending its arm and freezing the flooring next to her. Her psychokinesis lifted most of the fleshy Splicers, many of whom were fried and full of bullet holes, yet they fought anyways. They hissed, and swiped their arms and fired chaotically mid-air, but were easy targets for the marines and Security Bots. One of the fleshy Splicers cast Electrobolt at her. She screamed from the electrocution, losing control of her telekinesis and the targets falling.

Just as many Splicers aimed at Eleanor, a dolphin-screech echoed, followed by explosive fireballs showering the freaks. Once Eleanor's electrocution subsided, she saw a Big Sister sprint to the fight, visor red, and attack with fiery and telekinetic Plasmids. The Big Sister charged with her wrist-mounted needle, poking holes in skulls amidst Plasmids.

"Glad to see you again!" Eleanor called, then the echoes of hisses and growls came. The BIg Sister screamed like a dolphin and headed for the echoes, while the marines and Security Bots finished off the freaks who remained.

Eleanor looked through the window overlooking The Thinker, and teleported again. She reappeared above another Splicer as it crawled and hissed, ramming her feet into the back of its neck and breaking it. Eleanor saw Porter lying on his back beside the Code Printer panel. He bled out his mouth and through many bullet holes. He held a shotgun, and several dead fleshy Splicers lied nearby.

"Porter!" Eleanor ran to him, then heard several more fleshy Splicers force the door open, shooting machine guns. Eleanor spun around, hurling fireballs, while Porter cocked his shotgun and fired the last shells.

Amidst the stream of bullets, bullets bounced off Eleanor's Big Sister suit, but Porter was ripped open with bullets. Eleanor turned, big-eyed, and saw Porter glow green and then fade away. A trail of glowing greenness flowed off. She sighed with relief.

 _Good. The Vita-Chamber here still works. If only it could be used to apply to more genetic codes..._

Eleanor used her telekinesis to powerfully throw the fleshy Splicers against the ceiling, then pulled their guns out their grasp with another wave of telekinesis. She killed them with a mix of Electrobolts and telekinetic attacks. She teleported out to help the marines kill the rest of the fleshy Splicers. Once that was done, Porter returned, and fixed the position of his glasses. His shotgun was slung over the shoulder, he had two holstered revolvers, and a radio at his belt.

"Being taken by the military, narrowly escaping the apocalypse, exploring a flesh-covered Rapture, shooting guns, dying a hundred times, trying to save the world...I'm too old for this." Porter looked up at The Thinker, then saw Eleanor walk by.

"Nice to see you, too," Eleanor remarked as she took her green-lit helmet off, and smiled.

"Hello again, Ms. Lamb. I did not expect to see you here! I thought there was no way anyone could survive those sky-machines, but The Thinker kept telling me you were still alive. Wait, what happened to your eye?"

"I got shot in the face."

"You survived being shot in the face?"

"I've been getting that a lot lately. What were you doing here, anyway?"

"The Thinker informed me of its newest sample, one that eradicates the...fleshy biomass. It is ready to be formulated, I just need to find a Gene Bank."

The marines trudged down the stairs, numbering only four. Their signaller took his radio.

"Lieutenant, the gunfight's over. Davis, Schmidt, Hayes, Kowalski and Le Roux didn't make it..."

The Big Sister teleported back, and stood with her knees bent inward. More screeches and hisses echoed from afar. The Security Bots flew off, presumably to intercept the incoming threat.

"We have to get going! Everyone's on their way to the Fontaine Futuristics HQ via train," Eleanor said.

"Everything I need for the Plasmid is in my private office. We take that then head to my bathysphere."

The echoes of hisses and screeches amplified. It would not be long until another horde of fleshy Splicers came.

"Let's move," a marine said.

Everyone went to Porter's private office, where he prepared a bunch of things in a suitcase. The solemn scenery of unlit, melted candles, pictures of Pearl, and Charles' lifework did not affect him negatively.

"All for you, Pearl," Milton whispered.

The sounds of Security Bot guns and other firearms echoed.

"There, that's all I need!" Porter yelled, and everyone ran towards the bathysphere as fleshy Splicers pooled into the office.

The Big Sisters cast fiery Plasmids as they skipped backwards, then blasted the Splicers back with gravitational Plasmids, which also threw furniture and papers everywhere. The marines provided cover fire while Porter entered the bathysphere, the Big Sisters teleporting in. Once the marines entered, Porter activated the lever. While the door closed, Eleanor teleported out and caused more havoc with Plasmids, then teleported back inside the bathysphere as it descended.

"How did you do that?" a marine asked.

"Oh, teleportation just happens. You wouldn't understand, and there's no time to explain. Consider it the merging of quantum mechanics and genetics," Eleanor replied.

Everyone calmed down and took their seats, except the Big Sister, who sat cross-legged on the floor.

"That was close," a marine remarked. The Big Sister looked at him.

"Yeah. Thanks for helping us with your...magic. I don't think we would have made it without you," another marine said, the Big Sister looking at him. Eleanor nodded.

"I wish I could have saved your mates. But we can't help them now," Eleanor said. The Big Sister looked at her.

"Their sacrifice was not in vain. Once this new Plasmid is put to use, we can eradicate the fleshy biomass at a molecular level," Porter said, the Big Sister continuing her trance at staring at whoever was talking. "This will be the first step to neutralizing...that devilish chap known as Spirry."

"Good. Any ideas on how to deal with the skyborne machinery?" Eleanor asked. Porter's radio crackled.

"When the machines came, I connected to them," The Thinker's voice sounded from Charles' radio. "I was able to crack the equivalent of a network, but not with complete success. I slowed down processes by 66.6 percent. Currently, my rebuilt form is not yet destroyed, and maintains a steady interception of the machines while seeking new algorithms and exploitations."

"Excellent. Keep at it, Thinker, the world depends on you," Porter said.

"Finally...some good news," Eleanor commented. _Though, I don't see any future even if we survive…_

Booker awoke with a snort. He had sat on the floor with his back to the wall. His drowsy face noticed huge, bloody footprints along the fleshy flooring, footprints that had no heel and seemed to belong to a predatory animal. In fact, there was a puddle of blood between Booker's legs. He grabbed his Hand Cannon from the floor, got up, and looked around. The fleshy hallway was littered with dead Splicers, Splicers he had shot dead sometime ago.

Down the centre of the hallway was the trail of bloody footprints. By the looks of it, whatever caused them, had stopped before Booker while he slept, then moved on. Booker checked himself, but he was mostly unwounded, save for some scrapes and bruises. He looked up the hallway, in the direction of the footprints.

"Alright…let's keep looking for her." He followed the footprints.

Booker's search remained unsuccessful, the footprints seemingly went on forever. He sighed, then looked back and around.

"Why do I get the feeling I'm being watched? Ugh...Elizabeth, you better not be dead."

Booker overheard the intercoms wheeze to life, the crackling electrical noises reverberated throughout the headquarters.

"I will not tell you what you already know. But what I will say, at last, the Rapture Family is reborn," Sofia's voice sounded from the intercoms. She and everyone else had reached the HQ, and Sofia, unsurprisingly, had scuttled to the position of her former power.

"I never wished to be viewed as leader, but as mother. When my daughter rejected her mother, I did not give up. I went after her. From Ireland to New York, did Mother seek her daughter...the people's daughter… And, when found...she came back, reborn. Like the lost Lamb, once fuelled by the gene and the self… Once a voice I could not recognize... You too, my friends, can be born again in the Rapture Family. My absence was a blessing and a test, to harden the most faithful... Like the souls between us, together, we must break a special tyrant who has corrupted our Utopia! He roams freely, and I have personally seen him, how he weighs, and measures, and cuts, and rips… He has no family. No friends. No country. He thinks only to indulge in suffering and destruction; nothing else exists but his endless obsession of sadomasochism. The Rapture Family is to reunite at Persephone, and we shall drive out this tyrant for the better good." 

"What the hell is that woman talking about? Well, whatever. Persephone...must be a place somewhere here," Booker mumbled. He explored and searched, but it was basically impossible for him to find signs telling him where to go. Sofia's speech of genes, the self, tyrants, and the better good were rather annoying to Booker. It brought back bad memories.

Sometime later, Booker saw an aura walling across the hallway.

"A Tear? Maybe Elizabeth went there?" He stepped through the Tear, and noticed lots of dead Splicers in the adjacent area. "Wait, I was already here... I killed these uglies. Ugh...the Tear just sent me back to where I was. Do Tears just have no use anymore?"

Booker followed the bloody footprints again. Soon, his own footfall seemed rather loud, pressing against the Enaedonai and making squishy noises. A bit confused, Booker slowed his pace, but still heard the heavy footfall. He stopped. He listened. The footfall became louder. That was when Booker felt someone's breath on the back of his neck. The hot, heavy, bodily vapour enshrouded his head for a second. Once it dissipated, he heard slow, deep, heavy breathing, sounding like a furnace. Even _his_ heartbeat was audible.

"Shit." Booker had no idea how _he_ sneaked up on him like that.

A transparent green lady hovered beside Booker, then erupted. Unaffected, Booker turned around, left hand glowing green. The beast before him was big, bloody, fleshy, muscular, and demonic. It was the same Spirry he had seen in his dream with Eleanor.

The Possession trap clearly worked. Spirry's body had a green aura, and he seemed confused. He leaned forwards, looking down, empty eye sockets leaking blood.

"Well, the black leather coat looks good on ya," Booker complimented.

"Couldn't find a hat. Wanted to look like Comstock's devilish portray of Abraham Lincoln," Spirry gargled, blood leaking out his mouth as always.

"I...wasn't expecting that. But you can talk, and I'm not afraid of you anymore. So, why are you trying to kill me, even in my dreams?"

Spirry snorted, straightened his back, and clasped his hands behind his back.

"Because of who you are, and what you would become."

Booker frowned.

"And what would I become?"

"Father Comstock."

Silence. Booker thought of what Zachary, old Elizabeth and the Pinkerton told him. The familiar static and tuning in his brains came back. He touched his nose, blood. When he looked back at Spirry, the Possession effect ended, but the green aura remained. Spirry slowly tilted his head.

"And for that, you have to die, Dutchman. A father who sells his own flesh and blood should not live." The green aura faded away, yet Spirry did nothing.

"Wait, no… I didn't… I ran out with her! I didn't sell her! No! No, no, no, no… This time was different… Robert was dead, Eleanor killed him… There's no more debt! It's off!"

"Yes, Dutchman, indeed. The debt is off, I made sure of that. Eleanor killed Robert when I reverted her into an unstable Big Sister state. In her rage, she killed Mr. Lutece, as if Anna was her Little Sister. She then beat you good, Dutchman, didn't she?"

Booker frowned. The fact that Eleanor beat him unconscious was unpleasant.

"Yes, she did… Why are you calling me Dutchman?"

"DeWitt is a Dutch surname, Booker. As an American you didn't know that, did you? A man who is familiar with only one language speaks English."

"Well, whatever… What do you want from me? I don't have any Salts left, and if you wanted me dead, you would have killed me by now."

"I could kill you within seconds, Dutchman. But the girl...has just requested that I change my mind. I think she has forgiven you." Spirry straightened his head and slightly looked up.

"What girl?"

"But the other girl, Eleanor, she-"

"Dammit, pal, enough with the riddles! Just answer the question! ANSWER ME! Son of a _BITCH_!" Booker was ready to try to maul the monster, leaning into Spirry, face red, veins throbbing.

"Eleanor...she chose to return the baby to you. And so it was, Eleanor broke the constance, this time. I'm afraid the baby...ended up in an unforeseen state due to Eleanor's decision."

"For the love of god, pal! I'm not here to listen to stories and riddles!" Booker yelled through gritted teeth. In his rage, he punched Spirry across the jaw, hearing it shuffle with a wet noise, but the beast did not react, and Booker's hand really hurt. The pain made him realize how hopeless it was to fight Spirry. Booker calmed down a bit. Spirry cocked his head, but did nothing.

"Just… Just tell me what happened to my daughter, please…" Booker's brains reverberated with tuning and static distortion. More bleed leaked out his nose.

"When you took the baby and escaped me, what did you do, Mr. DeWitt?" Spirry asked as Booker wiped his nose with his sleeve.

"I ran away with her, of course! Then the Vox attacked New York, and... But that can't make sense. Eleanor could not have been there… What the hell is going on..."

Spirry straightened his head, as if examining Booker, or expecting him to talk more.

"Booker, what happened to Anna," a gentle voice requested, but it was quite raspy and gurgly.

"El-Elizabeth? Is that you?" Booker asked, looking around, but he could not see her anywhere. He looked back at the demon. "I… I don't know. I don't remember. I just don't know!"

Spirry briefly lifted his chin diagonally, gesturing Booker to turn around. He turned, but saw no one.

"Go, show him what he has forgotten… Before time runs out. I will not change my mind again, girl," Spirry said.

"Wait, wait...what's going on?" Booker quietly demanded. Spirry leaned into Booker, Booker feeling Spirry's breath go down his neck.

"You will see, Mr. DeWitt. You will see."

Spirry's heavy breathing, and loud heartbeat, stopped. Booker turned his head, but Spirry was gone. All that was left of him was a puddle of blood. Booker felt someone grab his hand from behind. The grip was warm, wet, slippery. He looked down, seeing a small hand gently grasping his own, the little hand missing skin, the tendons and veins visible. He heard a heartbeat, but not even half as loud as Spirry's.

"Booker...come with me," a young woman's soothing, but raspy and gurgly, voice spoke. Booker suddenly felt cold. He remained motionless and breathless.

He did not want to look back.


	41. Chapter 41 - Toward the End

He could smell her blood.

"This way, Booker. We don't have much time left."

 _Witness your history, Dutchman,_ Spirry's voice gargled in Booker's mind.

He heard a Tear open, and whichever version of Elizabeth this was, tugged his arm. Head kept low, Booker slowly turned. This Tear had a shadowy complexion, like the ones Michael formed. Booker stepped in.

He heard...running water? His shoes and pants soaked as he walked through a pretty creek, still feeling _her_ hand holding his. But, he kept his eyes low, staring into the water. His guide's blood flowed down the creek as she walked through the waters with skinless feet...

"Wait, a minute…I know this place." Booker let his arm drop, their hands letting go.

"Tell me what this place is."

"It's where… It's where… It's where I went after Wounded Knee. Would have been twenty years ago. I was…"

"Tell me why you were here."

"I… I regretted everything." Booker walked through the waters slowly, as if lost.

"You wanted your past erased."

"Yes."

"You wanted to have your sins cleansed."

"Yes, yes..."

"You wanted to leave everything behind. You wanted to be born again in the blood of the Lamb."

"Y-yes."

"You wanted Jesus to wash you clean and make you born again."

" _Yes!_ "

"So why didn't you do it?"

He just stared into the water.

"I… Do you really think a dunk in a creek will change anything?" Booker asked with some heat.

"Booker...will you look at me?"

Her question made him pause.

"No."

He felt her hand gently grab his.

"Nn...no."

"Please…"

"N-no...I don't want to!" Booker pulled his hand out her wet grip and stepped away. He could not bring himself to look at her. Then, his foot hit something under the water. He looked down, and saw himself, in the water...

He motionlessly stared for a few seconds.

"That's what you really want, isn't it?"

Booker was crushed. His spine and skin tingled. The tingling gradually became distorted tuning and static.

"Booker...you're bleeding."

After he touched his nose, he stared back at the corpse of himself.

"It can't be me. Ih-ih-it's Zachary, just younger! Can't be me, it's... It's...me. I...I died here. But, but how…" Booker hesitated. "How can I be dead, and alive, at the same time?" he whispered. He thought hard. "Is it Zachary? Is it me?"

"You're both."

Booker did nothing. He just stared at the corpse as memories, old and new, rushed his mind.

"This is where everything should have ended..."

"Just because the tree is uprooted, does not mean the seeds are dead… Booker, we need to get going, before it's too late, but… There's one more thing I have to show you."

Booker headed up the little hill slowly and weakly. He still could not look at her. Booker opened the shrine, and stepped through...

Greyscale darkness. Booker felt Anna in his arms, staring at her dad with big blue eyes. He burst through the building's door, hearing Eleanor and Spirry fighting up in the higher floors. He looked up, and saw a rocket flying straight towards him...

Booker sat up with a gasp, and a big headache. He looked around the greyscale streets of New York, and raised his chin up. The Vox fleet bombarded the city.

"But why the Vox? Why not Comstock, or Eliza... Wait…" Booker touched the sidewalk and felt around. "Anna!? Oh God, _ANNA_!" Booker screamed as he got up and looked around. Rocketry blasted buildings all around him.

As smoke billowed, Booker ran down the streets. Debris rained upon him and everywhere he went. He did not even think about Spirry or Eleanor, he just ran like hell.

" _Ffffh_ -ahh!" He endured deafening explosions, flaming debris, ashes, smoke, and embers. He thought he heard a distant cry. "Anna…"

A building collapsed, avalanching smoking debris across the road. Without thinking, Booker ran over the debris, coughing, clothes, hair, face and hands receiving a wave of heat. But he pushed on while the city exploded around him.

He heard a ghostly cry of a baby. He followed his instincts and raced after it. His feet, heart and lungs seared with pain from his overexertion. He smelled burning hair, but no matter how seared he became, he would never stop.

Turning around a corner, he raced down the next road, but an explosion from behind threw him down. Deafness and incapacitation gripped him for a few seconds. With a groan, he got up and limped on, pumping with so much adrenaline he did not care about pain. He heard the ghostly cry again...

Booker had no choice but to follow his paternal instincts. He shielded himself from more explosions, then ran down an alley. He saw someone standing up ahead, back facing him. A Tear appeared.

" _ANNNAAA_!"

Just as the figure was about to step into the Tear, Booker grabbed his arm and turned him around. The figure wore a blue school uniform that seemed too short for him. He had long dark hair and a heavy beard. Blood leaked out his empty eye sockets, drizzling over his shirt and some of it leaking onto the baby in his arms.

Booker grabbed the helmetless Boy of Silence's arms, trying to wrench his baby free as she wailed and kicked.

"Give her back you son of a bitch! Give her back!" the two struggled as the Tear expanded.

The Boy of Silence cocked his head, blood now gushing out his eye sockets.

"GIVE HER BACK!" The struggle continued.

The Boy grinned. Blood poured out in-between his teeth, Booker even hearing the Boy's teeth gnashing. Anna writhed and screamed as the Boy's blood drenched her. The Tear moved forwards, going between Booker and the Boy of Silence.

"Sometimes, skin disappears, Mr. DeWitt," Michael said as the Tear made echoing rips. Michael's face deformed until his skin, hair, beard and clothes began to rip off. He kept grinning, even as his nose, cheeks and lips peeled off, until there was nothing left but a meaty skull sprinkling blood backwards.

"GIVE ME BACK MY DAUGHTER! _NNNOOOO!_ "

Michael slid backwards into the Tear, and time itself slowed down. Booker grabbed the baby with both hands, but his fingers slipped from the blood, and the baby slid away… With a tearful grimace, Anna reached for her father. Booker leaned into the Tear, grabbing Anna's tiny arm in a last attempt to save her. As the Tear closed, Booker pulled Anna out.

Or what was left of her.

All the skin, even the scalp with the hair still attached, hung from Booker's hand, dripping blood, empty eye sockets staring.

He breathed hard. His heart and guts swam to his throat. He breathed harder and harder, shaking. His bones and tendons, stiff, his skin frozen. All that was left of Anna, was her blood leaking through his fingers, and her skin, all in one piece.

"Anna…" he quivered, then he fell, convulsing into a fetal position against the pavement. Booker screamed. Such grief afflicted him that he could barely breathe. He just wanted to die.

No matter how tightly his eyelids were shut, he could not stop the tears from trickling. After feeling more static and tuning, Booker found himself in his old apartment, now dilapidated. Even the piles of empty alcohol bottles remained. Outside the cracked window, Booker could hear the echoes of rattling chains.

"I'm sorry… I'm so sorry..."

He heard Elizabeth humming a peculiar song, tempo up, as if humming in desperation. Booker opened his hot, wet eyes. He no longer had Anna's skin. He felt old, weak, pathetic, useless, worthless, for his failure. There were no words, and no thoughts, for this nightmare.

"Time and time again, for twenty years, you would drink yourself nearly to death, wanting to forget what happened, and what would happen," Spirry growled as he walked along the floor, which creaked and split under his weight. His wings rubbed against the ceiling, while his tail dragged along the floor, smearing blood everywhere. Booker saw blood pool and drip in-between the boards, Elizabeth's humming making everything even more unnerving.

Spirry clasped his hands behind his back, and stood next to Booker. The monster's heavy breathing and audible heartbeat, the sound of dripping blood, and Elizabeth's humming, nearly drove Booker crazy.

"But then, incredibly...you sent yourself back...one last chance to begin again, and forget everything. Although you did not finish your destiny, it still affected the past, present and future, the last seed still growing, creating new constances and variables. But what makes you so special that you were the catalyst to so many worlds in the first place?"

Spirry asked a good question, but Booker did not have the answer.

Elizabeth finished humming her song. Booker looked at her feet, a puddle of blood already forming under the skinless silhouette. He could not stare her in the face. It would be his nightmares incarnate.

Booker heard something he never heard in a long time. A guitar? His blurry vision made out a man sitting on a chair, facing away, holding a guitar and strumming once in a while while playing a simple melody. The guitar was out of tune.

"Tell him the Luteces solved the Cipher," the guitarist said, having Booker's exact voice. Booker was rather confused.

"What?" Booker whispered, confused.

"Time is running out, Dutchman," Spirry warned. "Once The Rapture Family engages combat against Michael, he will win. If Eleanor dies before I am born again, everything you have seen will happen."

"Wait, how...how does all this work? The Vox, Eleanor, Michael...back then?"

"Don't you see, Booker?" Elizabeth asked with her raspy, gurgly voice, "it's not just old and new memories. It's also the future, again and again."

"But how?" he asked as he picked himself up.

"ADAM is the canvas of genetic modification, Dutchman. If the laws of the universe follow biology, and Elizabeth herself contains that protocol in her… Then applying ADAM to the laws of physics creates a canvas," Spirry explained.

"I...don't even know what the means… The Vox...they bombarded everything. Why? Did Daisy decide to become Elizabeth?"

"She sure has my bodily proportions," Elizabeth remarked quietly.

The guitarist continued playing his instrument, though Spirry did not react to that.

"Well, where are the Vox zeppelins now, Dutchman?" Spirry asked almost playfully.

"They're...flying towards Rapture," Booker answered.

"They won't survive," Spirry assured.

"Then...then how did the zeppelins come back?" Booker asked.

"They were commandeered by Michael's servants," Spirry answered. "Only you will survive Rapture if Michael wins today. Incredibly, you will find a way back, and restart everything, but... Michael will then change the past and future, forming it into a single constance. And then… What you have seen, has been. What you have seen, will be. What's done is done. What's done, will be done."

"And Michael will have created his own canvas," Elizabeth finished.

"Then we have to kill him!"

Spirry nodded. A faint yellowish aura appeared in Spirry's eye sockets, and Booker felt it. His nose bled again.

"Tell him the Luteces solved the Cipher," the guitarist repeated. Still, Spirry did not react; he stared at Booker while the yellow aura gradually amplified. Booker's head started to hurt. He looked back at the guitarist, who continued strumming.

"He'll only help you temporarily. Do you really think he'll just pick up and leave?" the guitarist asked. "He's still a sadomasochistic monster. That won't change, no matter what version of him you're dealing with. So, for the last time...tell him that the Luteces solved the Cipher. Tell him that before he goes into your head for good."

"Take him back, girl, before it's too late," Spirry instructed Elizabeth, then he took a breath, about to say something else.

"The Luteces...they solved the Cipher," Booker interrupted.

Spirry looked back at Booker and cocked his head. The auras in his eyes faded away, and the pain left Booker's brains.

"Tell him the Luteces remade the Cipher as two medallions," the guitarist instructed.

"Uh-uhh...th-th-the Luteces...they remade the Cipher as two medallions!"

Spirry cocked his head the other direction. He still did not react to the guitarist.

"Tell him Eleanor has both the medallions."

"Eleanor...she has both medallions."

"Did Eleanor tell you this?" Spirry asked.

"When Eleanor bonded with The Thinker, it allowed her to resist his mental projection," the guitarist instructed.

"When Eleanor bonded with The Thinker, it allowed her to resist your mental projection."

Spirry softly growled, as if in deep thought.

"This was how she could tell you things without Spirry knowing, to prevent Michael from also knowing." The guitarist strummed.

"This was how she could tell me things without you knowing, so that Michael also wouldn't know."

"Hmm...peculiar...that would also explain why I cannot read her mind very well anymore." Spirry looked at Elizabeth, then back at Booker. "So it's not you after all. I expected the Cipher to be destroyed by now, especially since Eleanor already knew about it. Very well. The circle will remain unbroken for a while longer, I think..." Spirry tossed something shiny at Elizabeth. It looked like a reflective disc—a mirror—which she caught. "Take him back, before Michael realizes you escaped. There is no time left."

She nodded, and opened a Tear. Spirry disappeared by some other means, much of his blood left mid-air before splashing on the floor. Then, she closed the Tear. She looked at the thing in her hands, and caused it to phase out of reality.

Booker looked at where the guitarist sat, but he wasn't there anymore. He then looked at where Elizabeth once stood, but she was elsewhere. She now stood in front of the door, back leaning against the door, arms crossed, the light passing through the glass slightly illuminating her silhouette's edges. Guts churning, Booker got up, breathing slowly. He really didn't want to look at…Anna. He broke. The tears came back, his chest tightened, the sounds of echoing rips flooded his mind.

"I'm...sorry. I'm sorry, Anna, I'm... I'm so sorry…" Booker's head dropped. Hot tears dripped from his face.

"Booker, I…" Anna hesitated, then took a slow breath. "I-I… I just want my dad to look at me...without seeing a monster." Booker did not look up. He felt Anna's hand touch his chin, her fingers warm, wet. "And I want to look at my dad…" she whimpered, then sniffled, "without seeing a monster."

Blue eyes. They were still so blue…

The dainty thing gently placed a hand on Booker's cheek, and smiled weakly, eyes as shiny as her flesh. They hugged tightly, feeling each other's heartbeat.

"When the nightmare ends...there won't be any more monsters, right?" she softly whispered.

"They'll be gone, Anna...all of them…and we'll be together..."

Booker soon felt a bit cold. He opened his eyes, and realized he no longer embraced Anna. He stood alone in the flesh-covered hallway of Fontaine Futuristics, again. He sighed.

"I'm gonna find that son of a bitch...and rip his bloody heart out!" he growled as he reloaded his Hand Cannons.

Just as he was about to walk, he then noticed something on the floor. A present? He knelt, undoing the ribbon and opening the box. Inside was a spiral-shaped bottle, with orange and blue lines swirling around. The liquid glowed, pulsating blue and orange. Next to the bottle was a note, which Booker took. The note read: _To: Booker. From: AD_

Warmth flooded Booker's chest. He picked up the bottle, unscrewed the top, and drank. He dropped the bottle and raised his hands from the discomfort and pain. His shields lit up, travelling into his veins, where his blood glowed blue.

His bones and tendons felt like they wanted to burst through his skin. He heard his bones and tendons pop, and then, his eyes erupted with blueness. Once the effect ended, he exhaled, and wondered what to do. He saw his shields reappear around his left hand, extending into a twisting spike of some sort.

Booker walked quickly and angrily, still a little shaky from anger and grief. Having hugged Anna, he was covered with her blood down his front, he looked like a killer from a horror film. It was not long until he stumbled upon trouble.

From behind a door, he overheard a few Splicers mumbling about heading to Persephone, but then they started screaming. Soon, the sounds of growls, ripping and chewing echoed, and the Splicers were silent.

"Hrmm."

Booker just kicked the door open with such force they slammed against the walls. Three fleshy monsters lifted their hands, guts and torn flesh stretching from the bodies of Splicers. The monsters crawled forth while hissing. Booker's shields expanded violently, hurling the three fleshy monsters off their feet.

Booker leapt upon one with a growl, his shields extending into a spiralling spike from his left arm, which he drove into a fleshy monster. The Vigor caused this section of spiralling shields to drill into the fleshy monster, then expand while inside it. The monster's ribs and spine cracked aloud, and blood erupted from its sundered chest.

The two other beasts went on all fours and swiped their paws. Booker's shields protracted, and struck into the incoming limbs. He withdrew both Hand Cannons and fired into their skulls, and after each shot, pistol whipped the beasts in their mouths, splitting teeth.

One fell onto a knee, hissing while clutching its forehead full of holes. The other headbutted Booker, but she shields withstood most impact, and he only staggered. He cast Shock Jockey, which affected both fleshy monsters. Booker rammed his Hand Cannons in either of the beasts' mouths, and fired both at the same time. Spinal cords severed below the brain, both fleshy monsters flopped over limply. As his shields regenerated, Booker felt his Salts regenerate, too.

Booker's search continued, guns holstered. He came upon a hallway with a thick, globby layer of Enaedonai everywhere, and he could see skinless, bloated bodies stuck within the fleshy walls and ceiling here and there. Most of the merged bodies were missing half of themselves, as if they had squished against the surface or were being absorbed by it. A few of the bodies breathed softly, a few others weakly moved a little.

Not to his surprise, Booker heard fleshy and squishy noises. The Enaedonai shivered, and sections burst out bloodily, fleshy arms protruding and clawing at him. His shields withstood their attacks, then his hands projected some of his shields as twisting spikes, ripping apart the arms in his way. He also cast Bucking Bronco, raising the arms then unleashing Murderous Crows upon them, feathery buggers splitting the arms apart.

The bodies in the walls and ceiling shook and breathed harder. Some of their bellies burst open, root-like guts slithering out and spitting Polyps at Booker. His shields blocked the Polyps, and he retaliated with Devil's Kiss. Soon, everything fleshy and moving around him was dead or writhing while crispy. He moved on, leaving behind a few Devil's Kiss traps. Again, as Booker's shields regenerated, so did his Salts.

As Booker went on, he occasionally crossed paths with Splicers or fleshy monsters, but his regenerating Salts and weaponized Shields allowed him to overcome his foes easily enough. Then, something different happened. A Tear appear, this one red and leaking blood around the edges. Some sort of immense serpentine, fleshy beast with a huge jaw shot through the Tear, hissing with such force blood gushed out its mouth. The snake did not have skin, but had big teeth and glowing yellow eyes.

"Oh, shit!" Booker cursed as the snake slithered at him, mouth agape. His new Vigor went into action, and he felt it charge up in his arm.

The serpent lunged with greater speed, smashing its head into Booker's shields and staggering him; he hurled a whip-like effect of his shields but it hit the ceiling. The serpentine fleshy monster then snapped its jaws sideways, and although its mandibles did not pierce Booker's shields, they did clamp around his legs.

Rearing, the serpent pulled Booker off his feet, then dragged backwards towards the Tear. Booker threw Possession at the monster, the green ghost lady affecting the serpent and giving it a green aura. The serpent let go of Booker and shook its head vigorously, hissing fiercely.

Mr. DeWitt got up and threw a Shock Jockey trap into the serpent's face where it stuck too. After a couple seconds, the Possession effect wore-off, but the electrical trap erupted. While the serpent was electrocuted, Booker withdrew his Hand Cannons and opened fire. To his surprise, the bullets bounced off the beast, leaving leaving holes.

"Damn, that thing is really tough!" He had another surprise. The serpent howled, opening its mouth while blasting a torrent of blood out its mouth. The gushing blood hit Booker and threw him against the wall. He had yet another surprise; the serpent inhaled, reared, then exhaled a mighty stream of Winter Blast 3.

Booker blasted Bucking Bronco downwards, hurling himself away as everything behind him froze. The serpent turned its head after Booker, its Winter Blast still gushing. Booker braced himself after landing, his shields extending into a wall and blocking the incoming freezing. He took this chance to run away, hurling Devil's Kiss over his shields.

Booker charged through some doors, hearing the serpent sliding down the hallway. He looked around, and decided to head up a set of L shaped stairs going up the building, lowers levels flooded. The serpent burst through the door, then twisted around the stairwell as it went after Booker. He threw another Possession at the serpent, confusing it, then ran up the stairwell while leaving behind fiery and electrical Vigor traps, which did their work once the serpent regained its senses.

Greatly angered, the serpent howled, coiling around the stairs, then shaking it. Booker lost his footing, and knew the beast would soon break the stairs. He got an idea, and his shields extended into a thread, terminating into a large ball on the wall. Booker grasped his Sky-Hook and, sure enough, felt it catch the magnetic force of the large ball-end of his shields.

With a tug, and a grunt, Booker was sent flying off the stairs just as the serpent ripped it down, the lower section of stairs crashed into the waters below. Booker's Sky-Hook latched onto the magnetic ball-end of his shields, and while latched to the wall, he unleashed Murderous Crows upon the serpent, which kept it quite busy as it thrashed about hissing.

Booker's extended shields flailed him through the air, but his Sky-Hook remained attached to it. He ended up catching the unbroken section of stairs, hearing it creak and bend, but it did not snap. While his shields returned to normal, Booker pulled himself up, hearing the serpent lift itself after him.

Spinning around, Booker threw Devil's Kiss into the serpent's mouth. He continued throwing Devil's Kiss, until the damn thing's fleshy, moist exterior evaporated, the flesh searched, smoked, and caught on fire. Screeching, the serpent writhed downwards, slithering down into the waters below to quench itself.

Booker threw a Possession trap down below, then went up the stairs, putting his Sky-Hook away. He entered the next floor and looked around, but saw nothing new. He ran down the hallway and burst through double doors, then realized he was surrounded by perhaps twenty fleshy monsters, all of them standing upright and staring at him.

Silence. Booker did nothing, and the beasts just stared at him with their eyeless skulls.

"Alright...who's next?" Booker asked, then heard rattling machinery.

"I am," a hoarse, hollow voice replied. Emerging from behind the fleshy monsters was another one, but different.

This one was smaller and not as muscular, but had cheeks, lips, blue eyes, and long blond hair. Various mechanical lengths, similar to skyborne machinery but much smaller, were connected to the tendons at the back of his hand, but also along his spinal cord, giving him the appearance of a grotesque puppet. The mechanical lengths came down from a Tear-like aura always floating above him.

The grotesque puppet walked towards Booker as if his joints were about to snap, arms raised halfway, as if wanting to crawl. The puppet often cocked his head side to side, neck popping repeatedly, and never broke eye contact with Booker. The puppet stood before Booker, eyelid-less eyes gazing through him.

"Well, what?" Booker asked.

"You came, just as Tongue said you would."

It took Booker a couple seconds to remember who Tongue was. The grotesque thing before Booker was Videre.

"He told me I'd find you, somehow."

"Likewise. He must have wanted you to see me, because he could not explain things very well. Ahh... You must be the one who split reality fifty-six years ago. At long last, it is time to end this concatenation. Follow me." The puppet turned, Booker quite confused. The fleshy monsters kept staring at him nearly motionlessly.

"Huh, what? Wait! What does that mean?" Booker asked, stepping forth and grabbing the puppet's shoulder. He turned.

"Mikha'el created synchrony, so that all realities occur in a time-scale. This will link all events in the synchronized series...concatenation. The circle will finally be broken, and a new reality will emerge. But who will break the circle? Mikha'el or you? Or perhaps someone else? Only one who has already broken the rules can do this."

"Wait, I think I've heard…" The choir's song came to Booker's mind. "What is this unbroken circle?"

"All reality flows like a circle. There is no true beginning, no true end. It is cyclic. An end...the end of all realities...simply leads to a new beginning. This is eternal. We will break the mirror, come." Videre turned.

"Mirror? What mirror?"

"I will take you down to it. There is no time left. We must go, before Mikha'el or Black Sun break the mirror, and all will be lost for us." Videre walked, Booker and the fleshy monsters followed. He looked back at them, but they remained unaggressive.

"Black Sun? Those guys from the other world?"

"Yes. They wish not to end Mikha'el's creation, Ainigma...they wish to take control her. Black Sun destroyed many realities to get this far. You must break the circle first."

"I-ughh...none of this makes any sense... Why does it matter who breaks this circle?"

"When the circle is broken, the sundering takes the intent of its destroyer, or so this is what I speculate. What happens afterward… God only knows."

"I don't believe in God."

"You don't have to. Creation and eternity will always exist. We are so close…"

Booker followed Videre down various hallways and passageways, the other fleshy monsters going with them. The serpent did not return.

"Will...will I be able to find Michael?" Booker asked.

"Yes, but you cannot kill him. Only those who open Tears can destroy him."

"As long as that son of a bitch dies...that's all that matters. But why are you helping me, Videre?"

"Look at us. Don't you see? _None of us_ want to keep on going."

They came upon a window overlooking Persephone. Booker saw the aurora borealis-like effect beaming out the trench beyond the penal colony. The base was very white and bright, almost like a giant mirror.

Further on, a section of window was broken, and connecting onto the hole, a giant intestine. The flesh-cave led down, down, down…

"Go. We will meet again underwater." Videre gestured to the oversized organ as it breathed.

"I've had enough of flesh-passages for a lifetime." Nevertheless, the image of Michael, and what he did…

Booker would take all the suffering in him, and convert it into rage.

* * *

"So... Rapture has its own mysterious basement," Eleanor remarked while shuffling through blood-soaked papers on Mother's desk. Her helmet was on the floor.

Sofia had finished her speech in the microphone, her office dripping faintly glowing blood almost everywhere.

The Elizabeths, Porter, Tenenbaum, and the lieutenant also looked through papers to have an idea of what was they would do, whilst Cindy played atop Mother's desk (much to Sofia's annoyance). Everyone else remained outside the office keep and eye out.

"Hm? You found something?" the lieutenant asked. Eleanor lifted some papers and blueprints about Rapture's infrastructure and subterranea.

"Yes. _The Sinker_ is probably what will allow us to enter the Luminescent Biomass," Eleanor answered.

"The Luminescent Biomass? I never thought of it much," Porter admitted.

"It think it is what caused the Sea Slugs' mutations," Tenenbaum said.

"Know anything else about it?" Eleanor asked, but Tenenbaum shook her head.

"Nobody really talked about it much, let alone explored it," Porter said. "Most people just called it northern lights and left it at that."

Eleanor noticed Mother was quiet, rather frowning at Cindy as she played in her imaginary world. Nevertheless, Eleanor became suspicious.

"Mother..." Eleanor said, grabbing Sofia's shoulder and turning her, the two face-to-face. "In the cathedral, when we first met Michael… You mentioned those robed fanatics self-mutilated themselves. How did you know?" Mother almost looked irritated.

"Ask yourself," Sofia bluntly replied. "Am I not educated on social psychiatry?"

"If you know something, just fuckin' say it," Pinkerton Elizabeth spat.

"You shouldn't waste any more time. My men are in danger," the lieutenant said.

"All I know are people, and what they want. I observed, I concluded."

"Even with that education, you made quite the conclusion." Eleanor frowned, but Mother did not continue. _She knows something about all this..._

"You still are not my child."

"Well, at least you're a bit better than you used to be, Mother. You had to lose me for that. A lesson you will never forget."

"Oh-whoa!" Cindy squeaked, falling off the desk, but old Elizabeth caught her.

"Good catch," blue Elizabeth said.

"Be careful, you," the old gal warned softly.

Porter's radio cracked to life.

"Is the new Plasmid ready?" Zachary's voice asked through the radio.

Porter got his radio.

"Eleanor easily found a Gene Bank. She also helped herself to the Gatherer's Garden with a plethora of other Plasmids. She tested our prototype Plasmid especially in Sofia's office. The fleshy biomass disintegrated within a minute, leaving behind only blood."

"I can still smell the roses," Eleanor remarked.

"Burning or freezing should also temporarily destroy the fleshy biomass," Porter butted in.

"Good, because those flesh-golems and Michael's fanatics are back. Daisy already took her men and are confronting them." Zachary said. Distant gunfire sounded in the radio. "How about our next clue? What do we do now?"

"It seems we'll be taking my bathysphere down to _The Sinker_ , the subfloor of Rapture, so to speak. Although parts of Rapture collapsed into the trench, oddly enough, many sections are also back. Eleanor believes it is the work of Michael and these...Tears…which I once criticized the Luteces for being mumbo-jumbo."

"And you can sure bet he's coming after us," Pinkerton Elizabeth commented.

"Since that Big Sister delivered a letter from Rapture with Michael's name on it, I speculate he predicted our arrival. He probably setup a trap for us, too. Watch that Big Sister carefully, just in case she takes orders from him," Eleanor warned.

"Will do," Zachary assured. "No time for talking, I gotta get into the action. Stay safe Sofia, I love you." The Big Sister's scream and guttural roars sounded through the radio before Zachary turned his radio off.

Sofia leaned into her intercom and turned it on.

" _The Rapture Family_ is to rendezvous at Inner Persephone. You will find monsters both huge and horrible, and robed individuals with elongated arms and legs. You will know what to do."

"Let's go," Eleanor said as she put her helmet back on.

They began their walk. The lieutenant radioed his men, telling them the plans.

After going down various passages and an elevator or two, they reached Outer Persephone uninterrupted, Enaedonai everywhere, of course. The further down they went, the thicker Enaedonai grew, with hearts visibly and audibly beating on them.

The walk towards Inner Persephone had a little more action, as the group occasionally stumbled upon fleshy monsters, but Eleanor, now equipped with additional Plasmids, held them off without much trouble. She utilized Gravity Well, Incinerate, Decoy and Hypnotize amidst her Big Sister Plasmids, to great effect with everyone's guns.

Other times, skinless limbs would erupt through the Enaedonai, but Eleanor's telekinesis gripped them, or she Winter Blasted them, allowing them to be shot or shattered. Eleanor felt quite good about everything. But memories of her and Father going to Inner Persephone rushed her mind. Sadness enveloped her.

 _I wish you could be with me again…_

Echoes of gunfire snapped Eleanor out of her thinking, visor turning yellow. She teleported forth into the centre of Inner Persephone, where Father stood his ground against The Rapture Family long ago. The windows overlooking the trench revealed the Luminescent Biomass, and occasionally a heart or brain swimming through the waters.

Eleanor quickly scanned the area as bullets whizzed everywhere. She saw Splicers all over the place, firing and shouting haphazardly as fleshy monsters tackled into them and ripped them apart.

Most regular Splicers were just dead meat, but a few Brutes treated the fleshy monsters as meaty punching bags, exchanging mighty blows that would quickly kill most. The Brutes even grabbed and lifted fleshy monsters and slammed them headfirst into the floor. Although impressive, not even the Brutes would last long against the sheer numbers of fleshy monsters. There were at least a few dozen of them, clawing and jumping over each other so eager they were to kill.

The Brutes, Houdini Splicers and Crawlers would keep a portion of fleshy monsters busy for a while, but it was quite obvious there was no easy way through the chaos. Everyone would have to fight their way to the elevator to reach Porter's bathysphere. Visor red, Eleanor joined the fight, hurling Plasmids like crazy.

Sofia and the others remained defensive, the Elizabeths summing three Motorized Patriots to get into the fray and begin clearing a path. Crank guns ripped open a score of fleshy monsters, allowing the others to gradually go forwards, but the fighting was still fierce and hectic.

In no time, Eleanor was surrounded by fleshy monsters, some gunned down by Motorized Patriots, who charged and were about to engage in the melee. But, there were enough fleshy monsters remaining to threaten her.

"Alright, Porter, this Plasmid better work…" Eleanor charged up her new Plasmid, her hands dripping with steaming, boiling ADAM. She unleashed a wave upon the fleshy monsters, and their flesh bubbled and started to melt. They made high-pitched gurgling but lunged at Eleanor anyways. She erupted with an anti-gravitational blast, gurling the fleshy monsters away, their bodies become gelatinous and gooping apart. "Ow! That took a bit of ADAM out of me! This will take a while to recharge…"

Meanwhile, the Vox, Zachary and the marines were up on the mezzanine, keeping a defensive position while the Vox Beasts and Fireman bombarded the enemies. Once they ran out of rocket,s the Beasts used their shotguns, clubbing with them as well. The Zealot constantly teleported about while sending Murderous Crows and slicing and dicing with his chipped, slightly bent, sword, damaged from overuse.

Zachary had grabbed one of the fallen fanatics' swords, fighting with it in his right hand, and revolver in the other. He parried and attacked with both weapons like the devil himself, arms and heads flopping mid-air all around him. Amidst the frenzy, he noticed some fanatics crawling up the walls and ceiling, jumping onto Crawler Splicers, and pairs of them fell while clawing at each other.

"Burn! Burn! _BURRRNNN_!" The Fireman seemed angrily focused, swords and claws unable to bypass his or the Beasts' armours. His use of Devil's Kiss put quite a few fanatics on fire, while the Zealot kept blasting Murderous Crows about. The Zealot, having a free hand, picked up a sword to fight with two.

Eleanor teleported to the mezzanine. She spun around to check on Zachary and the Vox, who were charged by Michael's spider-like robed fanatics. Zachary threw a Possession trap, forcing a score of fanatics to turn on their own, but they were nonetheless chopped apart by the charging horde.

Some of Michael's servants unleashed Murderous Crows, attacking both fleshy monsters and humans, Zachary's shields lighting up, Daisy and the marines swinging their guns about to bat the damn things away. The Zealot was unaffected by the fanatics' Murderous Crows, but they were not immune to his own. The Fireman and Vox Beasts, being armoured, were only distracted by the Murderous Crows.

Eleanor knew she had to take out the fanatics equipped with Murder of Crows first, seeing the Big Sister tackle into one, pick him up over her shoulder, and threw him over the mezzanine. Eleanor charged them, ramming her needle into one, engulfing another in flames, and then sending a score of others into the air with a Cyclone Trap. She and the Big Sister put many more fanatics and fleshy monsters on fire, but both kinds of foes were relentless, attacking even when on fire. Eleanor parried a sword with her needle then stomped on the fanatic's knee, snapping it backwards, then she headbutted her helm into his face, cracking it open. A stomp to the throat broke his trachea.

"Keep on coming! Make it last! I'll find Michael no matter what you do!" Eleanor exclaimed.

She was a bit surprised to find that the fleshy monsters and fanatics targeted each other with greater frequency than anyone else. With their long limbs, the fanatics chopped open the fleshy monsters deeply, sometimes hacking off fingers, but their aggression led them to their dooms. The meat-monsters were just too big and too strong to face up close, even while being pecked apart by Murderous Crows, filled with bullets, and blackened from fire. Their growls and screeches were deafening.

Eleanor cast a Gravity Well up above her companions, sucking a number of hostile crows up. She, Zachary and the Big Sister bombarded the fanatics with Plasmids, but they just kept pouring out their Tears.

Amidst the chaos of Murderous Crows, Eleanor's heart sank when she saw one marine have his head and arms chopped off by fanatics, and another bit over the head by a fleshy monster who wrenched the neck and cracked it before being gunned down. Zachary threw Old Man Winter and froze some foes, giving Eleanor an idea.

Eleanor teleported behind one of the shadow Tears, and unleashed Winter Blast 3 through both hands into the Tear. Gradually, the ice built up until the Tear was clogged with ice.

"Good idea!" Zachary yelled, throwing an Old Man Winter trap into a Tear. While provided covering fire by the marines and Vox, Zachary and Eleanor managed to seal the Tears with ice. The remaining fanatics were killed, their corpses littering the floor.

With the shadow Tears icebound, most enemies in the mezzanine were soon dead or dying, the marines and Vox ran to the railings to fire down upon the enemy below. However, it was not long until more Tears opened, and more of Michael's servants ran out, forcing everyone to shoot at them. The Big Sister cast a gravitational ring and hurled several fanatics off, while Eleanor and the Fireman used their Plasmids against many others. The Zealot engaged in some sword fighting, blocking incoming blades then unleashing Murderous Crows point blank.

Eleanor teleported down below to check on Porter and the others. She cast a few Gravity Wells to disrupt fleshy monsters, saving two Brutes from being swarmed, while a few Houdini Splicers teleported around throwing fireballs, but they were soon tackled by fleshy monsters and torn up.

"Get to the elevator! Run!" Eleanor shouted, casting more Plasmids to keep the fleshy monsters busy.

The Brutes saw Sofia with the others, and recognizing her, they did not fight the humans, only the fleshy monsters. Both remaining Brutes were ripped open quite badly by the monsters' claws, but they fought regardless.

"Make way for Lamb!" one of the Brutes yelled, grabbing a fleshy monster mid-air, who had aimed for Sofia. The brute slammed the monster face-first into the floor, then threw punches into the others around him. By the looks of it, all the regular Splicers were dead by now, but a few Houdinis continued teleporting about and evading their pursuers.

While the Patriots' Crank Guns unleashed a mighty torrent of bullets, Sofia and the others headed for the stairs, literally walking over dead and dying fleshy monsters and the chunks of Splicers.

"Keep your eyes closed, baby!" old Elizabeth told Cindy, carrying her over the gore. Cindy put one hand over Little Daddy's face.

"Dammit! Fall back!" the lieutenant shouted as perhaps twenty fleshy monsters crawled down the walls.

The fleshy monsters swarmed the Brutes and Patriots, bringing them down and gradually ripping them open. The Brutes screamed, but kept wrestling. One by one, the Patriots phased out of reality after sustaining too much damage, whilst the Brutes threw fleshy monsters off and continued fighting, but they were just swamped again, and the Brutes screamed again as more claws and teeth dug into them.

Eleanor cast Porter's new Plasmid again, affecting a score of fleshy monsters, who began melting. They charged her, and she danced around their claws and teeth, keeping them busy as they fell apart.

A fleshy monster who bypassed Eleanor's Plasmid and the Brutes managed to charge the group from the side. Porter turned to the side, firing his shotgun repeatedly, but the fleshy monster just kept coming. The lieutenant emptied his clip into the monster's head, the Elizabeths, Tenenbaum and Sofia firing their pistols at it, the combined firepower severely slowing it down. Porter rammed his shotgun into the monster's skull and blow the top off of it off, dashing blood all over his front, but the damn thing was finally dead.

"Is there no end to this!?" Tenenbaum yelled, then she, Sofia and the Elizabeths were charged by several fleshy monsters. Tenenbaum, being the autistic goose she was, could barely aim a pistol, and Sofia couldn't do anything, either. The Elizabeths fired their pistols, but they did little. The Pinkerton did shoot one monster's in the mouth, blasting off a few teeth.

"Get back!" the lieutenant barked, standing in the way of the beasts and firing at them, but he was promptly trampled and the monsters continued running.

The ladies had no choice but to run away, firing back at their pursuers, Eleanor unable to stop them as she was preoccupied with her foes, one of which she rammed her needle through, lifted, then slammed into the wall.

"Oo-wahh!" blue Elizabeth wheezed, dropping her pistol from fright. She just gasped, covered her head, and fell down as a fleshy monster dove at her. That was when someone jumped over her, driving a glowing yellow spike into the monster's head, which then exploded, splatting blood and brains everywhere. It was Booker, his shields expanding and blocking the other fleshy monsters, staggering them.

He stepped through his own shields, which did not affect him, armed with just his Sky-Hook, which had his shield's aura. Booker rammed the fucking thing into a fleshy monster's sternum, his shields protecting him from the monster's claws and teeth. Empowered by his new Vigor, the rotaries of the Sky-Hook spun with greater speed and power, so much that Booker's arm shook. The device rammed into the fleshy monster's sternum and chewed it apart as if a chainsaw. In fact, the Sky-Hook dug so deep into the beast's body, Booker's arm shot into the torso.

The other fleshy monsters, while sustaining fire from the lieutenant and the Pinkerton, attacked Booker, but his shields drove into them and staggered them. Booker rammed a Devil's Kiss trap into one monster's mouth, and then drove his Sky-Hook into another's teeth, and started grinding the top off of its head off. The Devil's Kiss trap exploded, flames flowing out the monster's mouth, and it fell over writhing, burning inside out.

Booker threw a Possession trap, which triggered, affecting some fleshy monsters who ran off to fight other fleshy monsters.

"Good timing, Mr. DeWitt!" the Pinkerton exclaimed, putting her back to the wall to let the Possessed fleshy monsters pass her.

Blue Elizabeth remained on the floor, rather shaky.

"I think I pissed myself a little…" she whispered to herself. Booker helped her up. "Where'd you get that new Vigor?"

"From Anna." Booker's answer caused Elizabeth to raise an eyebrow. "Where's Michael? We need to rip that bastard's heart out."

"I have not seen him," Eleanor replied.

Meanwhile, the two Brutes who remained pulled through, pummeling their fleshy foes into bloody pulps, but bleeding everywhere from claws and teeth. Even when partly incapacitated, fleshy monsters continued swiping their claws. Quite angry, the Brutes continued beating the fleshy monsters, looking for the wounded or dying, more than glad to beat them to death while cussing. A few Houdini Splicers reappeared, throwing Plasmids at the dying and injured monsters as well.

The Possessed fleshy monsters sprinted past the Splicers, Houdinis throwing Plasmids at them and a Brute throwing a chunk of concrete, but the Possessed ignored them.

Eleanor teleported back up to help Zachary continue covering the Tears with ice, whilst the others and the Possessed finished off the remaining fanatics and fleshy monsters. The statues of ice were shattered, too. Once all foes were dead, each Possessed fleshy monster seemed bewildered. Eleanor observed one curl its fingers underneath its ribs, until it pushed its hands upwards underneath its rib cage. Grunting and growling amidst struggle, the beast literally ripped both halves of its rib cage out and spread them open. The other Possessed fleshy monsters did likewise once Possession wore off. They remained standing until blood loss and suffocation caused them to lose consciousness.

"Those things...are beyond sick," Daisy remarked as he wiped blood off her face, though her clothes were drenched.

"Okay, I think the coast is clear," blue Elizabeth said. Her group went forth, trying to find flooring between the corpses.

All at the same time, the Elizabeths looked at the window, and saw something big swim to the glass. The young Elizabeths' mouths opened.

"Songbird!?" the two younger Elizabeths exclaimed at the same time. Songbird placed his hand and head on the glass, taking a look inside, eyes beaming whiteness. Songbird was rather different. He was decorated with barnacles and rusty. Oddly enough, Songbird had a white aura, his body rather shadowy, and his presence produced constant distorted static and tuning sounds, quite loud and painful to listen to.

"What is that?" the lieutenant and Porter asked at the same time.

"Looks like something Suchong would make!" Tenenbaum remarked.

A bubbly howl sounded. Songbird turned and swam off. The black entity went after him, wing scraping against the glass. Songbird swam off, the black entity chasing him.

"And what is _that_?" the lieutenant asked, the Vox running to the railings at the mezzanine.

"Big Angel!" Cindy exclaimed.

"A monster. That's all you need to know," the Pinkerton answered.

Songbird swam towards the glass again, then stopped. It checked through the glass again, as if surprised. He turned his head, and to the Elizabeths' surprise, Songbird opened a very big Tear. The black entity rammed into Songbird, both disappearing in the Tear, which closed.

"Songbird can now open Tears?" old Elizabeth asked, amazed.

"I...guess so…" the Pinkerton remarked.

Everyone regrouped at the mezzanine. Daisy, Zachary, the Zealot, and the marines were shredded open pretty bad, but alive. The armoured combatants were also covered with blood.

The lieutenant ran to his men to see who survived.

Behind the masses of ice blocking the Tears, fanatics chipped away at the ice with their swords.

"Let's try to close these Tears!" blue Elizabeth exclaimed, so the two younger Elizabeths ran forth to do just that.

It was not long until howling echoed from Outer Persephone. The Big Sister's visor went yellow, and she ran off, teleporting somewhere.

"More are comin'," a Beast commented.

Sofia walked to the mezzanine and overlooked the Splicers below. Several new Splicers appeared, talking incoherently about seeing Lamb. Well, they saw their leader and were quite enthralled by her presence alone.

"Further intruders invade the Family. Keep them away. I will head to the heart of their great chain, and cast them into the dark." The Splicers were in awe. They headed for Outer Persephone to face the next incoming horde, a suicide mission for sure.

"Baxter, Wallace, watch our six!" the lieutenant barked while he and the other marines ran to the elevator, everyone else following, Eleanor behind the lieutenant. Her senses stung by static and tuning noises, distracting her.

The elevator doors opened, someone inside stepping through and placing his hands on the lieutenant's and a marine's head. Eleanor hesitated when she saw the lieutenant and the marine beside him suddenly have frozen heads. The man smashed the heads together, both frozen skulls shattering.

"Going somewhere?" Michael asked, the Big Sisters' helmets going red. The few other marines near Eleanor opened fire, bullets thudding against Michael, but he remained standing. He extended his arms, a gravitational wave erupting around him and blasting everyone off their feet.

Landing on their backs hard, Booker, the Fireman and Zachary threw Devil's Kiss at Michael, nearly hitting the marines due to lack of space. Michael burst into flames but made no reaction, his body becoming quite dark yet having a white aura. His eye sockets glowed white. Michael's presence had a constant distorted tuning and static sound.

Michael lifted his chin; a Beast lifted off the floor and hung upside down mid-air, his helmet flying off. Despite floating, the Irish Vox Beast cocked his shotgun and fired at Michael, the few nearby marines also emptying their clips into him, but he kept standing. Michael conjured Old Man Winter, but instead of a ball of dry ice, he formed a large spike. He grabbed the icy spike with both hands and drove it into the Beast's mouth, the spike poking out the back of his neck.

"Oisin!" Daisy yelled as she picked herself up, the dead Vox Beast hitting the floor.

Michael released another gravitational wave just as the Zealot teleported, which hurled everyone else against the ceiling. They dropped like flies, the non-combatants especially hurt. The Zealot reappeared behind Michael, swinging his sword across his neck. The blade passed clean through, Michael's neck cracking and blood spurting out. The sounds of static and tuning intensified, and Michael's head did not roll off his shoulders. His flames also dissipated.

Michael spun around as the Zealot drove his blade through his heart. Michael's hands dripped with embers, and then he received Murderous Crows to the face. He staggered, the Zealot teleporting away before Michael could grab him.

Feeling bullets thud against his back, crows cow, Michael turned around, receiving Devil's Kiss from the Fireman, Eleanor and the Big Sister getting up and hurling fireballs, Booker casting Shock Jockey, Zachary throwing Old Man Winter. Bullets, Plasmids and Vigors simply did nothing against Michael's ghostly frame.

Booker's shields reconfigured, surrounding his body from friendly fire. The front arranged into a large drill, which Booker rammed into Michael's sternum. Michael struck Booker with his palm, a layer of ice freezing over his shields, which exploded, hurling Booker off his feet. Michael jumped, summoning an icy spike which he intended to drive into Booker, but the Fireman dropkicked Michael mid-air, and Michael hit the wall. Zachary then cast Possession.

" _Don't_ insult me!" Michael stated, the green aura dissipating. Zachary threw Old man Winter at Michael, freezing him on the spot. To his surprise, Michael immediately burst through the ice with such force Zachary fell over, shields shattered. While on his back, he aimed his revolver and fired.

Before Michael could attack Zachary again, the Big Sister teleported beside Michael, driving her needle into his side then lifting him off the floor, then began casting fireballs into him with her free hand. While still being shot at from others, Michael grabbed the Big Sister's arm and swung her into the wall, the Big Sister screeching, glass cracking from impact but no water went through yet.

Michael's feet hit the floor, the barrage of bullets, Plasmids and Vigors relentlessly hitting him, yet he himself remained just as relentless. The Elizabeths summoned Motorized Patriots, who charged, firing at Michael at close range, the torrent of three Crank Guns staggering him constantly, yet he remained on his feet.

"Jeez! What does it take to kill this guy!?" Zachary yelled as he reloaded his Smith and Wesson. While Michael fought the Patriots with gravitational blasts and icy formations, everyone else had time to reload and rethink their plan.

The howls and roars of fleshy monsters echoed from below, followed by distant gunfire. The Splicers would not last long.

"How the hell can we kill him!?" Daisy yelled as she finished reloading her carbine, then saw the two younger Elizabeths rather sneakily make their way behind the Patriots as they pummeled Michael.

"Let us get close to him!" the Pinkerton shouted, the Patriots' parts breaking off.

"We need to open two Tears in him!" blue Elizabeth said.

"Don't get close to him! Are you crazy!?" Zachary yelled, he and Booker charging to make sure the Elizabeths didn't get themselves killed.

Michael shouted, unleashing a powerful electromagnetic eruption, which sent the Patriots staggering until they fell, the two Elizabeths evading the lumbering automatons. Michael, who had overexerted himself from his attack, looked side to side as the two Elizabeths charged him. He spread his arms, two Shadow Tears starting to form. The Elizabeths grabbed his arms, his Shadow Tears phasing away, and then two new Tears began to open on him. Michael's body leaked with zaps and sparks. He quickly lunged both hands, striking the two Elizabeths in their big heads, knocking both to the floor, foreheads leaking blood. They were too hurt to get up.

"ELIZABEEETH!" Booker and Zachary yelled at the same time.

"Stop getting in our line of fire!" Daisy complained.

Michael put his hands together, forming a swirling mass of purple energy, and unleashed it at his charging foes in a curving motion. Both Bookers' shields broke, and they both hit the wall. They groaned as they hit the floor. Michael threw another wave of such power as the Bookers picked themselves up, and without shields, they were smashed against the wall again and stunned.

Michael's hands conjured spiky masses of ice, which he aimed at the debilitated Bookers. Eleanor teleported behind Michael, ramming her needle into his lower back, hearing it crack his spine. Immediately, the Big Sister leapt at Michael, driving her needle through his ghostly head. Both needles sucked out Michael's ethereal blood, and his body pulsated with electricity and white rays.

Eleanor threw him over the shoulder and ran off with him, hearing the Big Sister's needle rip out of him. Eleanor threw him over the mezzanine, then jumped off, driving both feet into Michael's throat, a satisfying crunch sounding. Eleanor raised her head, realizing the next wave of fleshy monsters charging!

Eleanor felt Michael grab her legs, so she teleported away. Sitting up, Michael spread his arms, forming two Shadow Tears, each spewing forth a stream of sword-armed fanatics. Michael unleashed a wave of freezing power upon the first rank of fleshy monsters, his fanatics jumping upon the icy statues and attacking the others, some unleashing Murderous Crows. Both sides fought atop bodies, the fallen piling up on each other and gradually forming a hill of corpses and wrestling pairs.

It was not long until the two Big Sisters began throwing fireballs from the mezzanine. Michael turned as he was peppered with fireballs. While Michael's fanatics kept the fleshy monsters busy, he sprinted up the stairs. A Gun Automaton was summoned, blocking his way while shooting at him. He broke through it with an anti-gravitational pull, and continued his charge. Once he reached the top of the stairs, Eleanor drop-kicked him in the chest, and sent him tumbling down the stairs.

Meanwhile, Booker recovered, sitting up and holding his head. He noticed old Elizabeth healing Zachar with various medical things, Cindy standing nearby and watching nervously. The Vox and marines headed for the stairs, Fireman and Zealot casting their Vigors to slow Michael done while the others fired.

"Come on, Booker, stay with me! Please, get up…" the old gal croaked. Zachary groaned and sat up once the raw ADAM kicked in, but his remained disorientated. Old Elizabeth then waddled to her younger counterparts. Blue Elizabeth coughed and sat up, but the Pinkerton looked quite hurt and was unresponsive. "Elizabeth! Child, you there? Get up!"

"Elizabeth!" Booker exclaimed, getting up and running to her. "You okay?"

"Yeah, just dizzy and hurt." She looked at the Pinkerton, "I hope she's alright." That Elizabeth was still out.

A blast of power threw down the marines, Eleanor, Daisy and the Zealot, the armoured Vox only staggering. Michael unleashed an electromagnetic blast, shocking everyone, especially the armoured Vox. Another gravitational eruption hurled everyone away, armoured Vox falling down.

Screaming, the Big Sister grabbed Cindy by the arm and threw her upon her shoulder, then threw fireballs at Michael while keeping her distance.

"Here we go again!" Booker shouted. His shields extended as a lance and hit Michael in the head. Equipping his Sky-Hook, Booker flung himself forth, Sky-Hook following the magnetic path of his extended shields and striking Michael, who staggered. Booker's shields rearranged, becoming chain-like and wrapping around Michael, constricting him while grinding at his ghostly body.

Sky-Hook in one hand, Hand Cannon in the other, Booker struck Michael one after the other at the hapless Michael's head. He then rammed his Sky-Hook sideways into Michael's mouth, rotaries grinding as they ripped through the back of the jaw and neck. Booker felt the rotaries bouncing against Michael's spinal cord, yet his head did not rip off.

Michael freed himself with yet another gravitational blast, shattering Booker's shields and hurling him away. Eleanor charged, diving the top of her helm into Michael's face and staggering him. She then delivered a flurry of punches, every left punch driving her her needle into his body.

Michael suddenly struck Eleanor in the sternum, his palm bursting with ice, and Eleanor froze. Wearing a helmet and suit, she did not feel the cold too much, and simply teleported out her icy tomb just as Michael shattered it with his forceful power. He looked around, and Eleanor reappeared above him, driving her feet into his head, pinning him to the floor.

"Don't give up! Make this last!" Eleanor shouted while repeatedly stabbing the back of Michael's head with her needle. Ghostly blood spurt out due to the needle's suction, but Michael remained very much alive. " _Owooff!_ " A backwards blast of power threw Eleanor off her feet; she landed on her helmet.

Michael got up, as did the Vox and marines, who opened fire. The Bookers, blue Elizabeth, old Elizabeth, Sofia, Tenenbaum, and Porter also opened fire as best they could, everyone forming a half-circle around Michael while his fanatics fought the fleshy monsters below. The intense use of bullets caused Michael to stagger into the railings. One by one, guns clicked; out of ammo. The Big Sister, Eleanor, Fireman, and Zealot continued using their powers against Michael, but he seemed quite resistant to them.

"I'm dry!" a marine yelled once his rifle ran out, he and the others slinging their rifles over the shoulder then withdrawing their Browning Hi Power and firing those.

With assault weapons out of ammo, Michael regained himself, but was slower, is overuse of Plasmids clearly affecting him negatively. Taking the advantage, Zachary threw Old Man Winter and Eleanor cast Winter Blast, both powers hitting Michael at the same time and freezing him in place. The marines' pistols ran out and they reloaded them, Eleanor, Booker, Zachary, the Fireman, and the Zealor getting their powers ready. The Big Sister charged her own Plasmids but stood over the Pinkerton, who remained unconscious, Cindy clutching the Big Sister's neck.

"Elizabeth! Now that he's frozen!" blue Elizabeth yelled, her old version nodding. The girls ran forth, Booker running with them, his shields rearranging into a moving barrier to cover the Elizabeths as they began opening Tears within the icy pillar.

An eruption of forceful power shattered Booker's shields and hurled him and the two Elizabeths several feet back. They hit the floor unconsciously, rolling over. Vigors and Plasmids peppered Michael, the marines emptying their pistols at him as well, but he kept walking in a dominant posture even while Murderous Crows pecked him open.

The Fireman charged Michael, clubbing him with gauntlets and headbutting with his helm. Michael lunged both hands into the Fireman's helm, turning him into an icy pillar. The Zealot leapt, swinging his sword; Michael caught him mid-air and slammed him against the floor.

Eleanor and the Big Sister were next, teleporting at Michael's sides and driving their needles into him while casting fiery Plasmids point blank. Michael's fist glowed with anti-gravitational power, and he punched Eleanor in the gut with such force she lifted off the floor with a groan. She convulsed mid-air and slumped down. Michael kicked the Big Sister in the knee, hearing it crack. The Big Sister wailed and fell, then Michael's arm froze, conjuring a mass of ice which he flailed into the Big Sister's sternum, which shattered on impact but knocked her over, Cindy falling off the ride. Michael unleashed an electromagnetic blast into the Big Sister, hurling her away where she limply flopped against the wall.

"Well, only one thing to do now..." Porter commented, gripping his empty shotgun with both hands by the barrel. Altogether, everyone still standing charged Michael, surrounding him and clubbing him with their guns while he took them down few by few.

Amidst the melee, Zachary and Booker happened to get their chance, and both cast Possession at Michael. He shook his head, somewhat stunned. Booker cast Bucking Bronco, lifting Michael into the air, Zachary casting Shock Jockey at the floating foe, and the Zealot unleashing Murderous Crows.

Affecting himself with gravitational power, Michael slammed himself down into the floor, the ensuing eruption of electromagnetism hurling his many attackers away. Cindy shrieked as she flew over the mezzanine.

" _CINDY!_ " old Elizabeth and Eleanor screamed in their pain.

Michael was about to charge, but he stopped mid-step. Everyone wondered why, then Michael spun around. A pair of wings appeared, rising behind the railings, then _he_ appeared. The skinless, fleshy demon hovered and extended his arms. In his hands was Cindy, Spirry wondering how the hell he ended up inadvertently catching her. The two just stared at each other while the fleshy monsters and fanatics fought like mad cats below.

"B-B-B-Big Angel?" Cindy quivered. Spirry cocked his head.

"Angel to some, demon for others." The marines and Vox stared at the demon, full of surprise.

"Now I've seen everythin'…" Daisy mumbled.

" _Mundus est diaboli_ , is it not?" Michael remarked. "You finally came." Spirry tilted his head the other way, Cindy looking back at Michael.

"I only had to fight through a thousand of the Tears you left behind. Sorry I kept you waiting," _he_ grumbled sarcastically.

"Asinine. We both know I partly control your mind. Your bond with the girl must be genuine. Ironic that it is either you or I who will kill her."

"Indeed." Spirry put Cindy behind his neck, where she clutched.

Blue Elizabeth recovered and got up. Her scraps, cuts and bruises seemed to have healed. She looked around, almost everyone half-unconscious, then saw Spirry hovering. Her eyes widened and her mouth dropped.

"No way that can be real…" she whispered.

 _Help the other you,_ a gurgly voice sounded in her mind.

 _Wait, this is the same voice when the machines…_

 _It is indeed the same voice, but not the same entity. I have yet to find him. For now, help your other you..._

Blue Elizabeth nodded and crawled towards the Pinkerton, who's face turned a bit in her unconscious discomfort.

 _Oh God, stay with me, girl…_ Elizabeth got her medical expertise ready.

"Very well. I will kill two birds with one stone," Michael said, forming his power.

Spirry suddenly dove, ramming his head into Michael's face. A loud crack sounded, Michael's back hitting the floor. Spirry swooped then folded his wings, slamming his feet into his foe's abdomen, crushing guts and shattering the pelvis. Yet, Michael's brutalized, ghostly body kept working. He unleashed his power directly at Spirry, causing the demon to stagger, Cindy nearly falling.

Michael lifted his legs and swung back on his feet, bones cracking and popping. Spirry and Michael approached each other, Spirry swinging his claws wide and powerful. Like a flexible spine, Michael evaded Spirry's swings while punching him in the sternum and kicking his legs. Spirry snapped his jaws over Michael's head, lifted him off the floor, and began thrashing Michael to and fro as if a chew toy.

Michael erupted with forceful power, freeing himself from Spirry's jaws and staggering him. Michael's aura then lashed at Spirry. The skinless fellow shook while raising his arms.

"You will obey," Michael commented, and Spirry walked forwards while twitching randomly, struggling against Michael's will. Michael's fists got empowered by his purple gravitational power, then ice formed over them, and he unloaded a flurry into Spirry's ribs and stomach.

Unable to defend himself from Michael's mind control, Spirry's ribs cracked, his stomach became swollen, and his already-bleeding body bled even more once his stomach broke open. Michael's icy formations became blades, and he rammed both arms into Spirry's stomach, blades cutting through and Spirry's intestines flopping out. The demon grunted.

Icy blades exploding inside Spirry to maximise damage, hurling blood and more guts out, Michael's freezing Plasmid froze Spirry's blood into a spice of ice. Michael grabbed the spike of ice, pulled it out Spirry's body, then rammed the pointy end into Spirry's mouth. The tip popped out the back of his neck, Cindy leaning to the side and narrowly escaping the spike.

Michael then grabbed the front half of the icy spike and wrenched it, feeling it break Spirry's neck. Spirry fell to a knee, grabbing the icy spike. Michael ripped the spike out Spirry's neck, then drove it into his left eye socket, where the rest popped out the back of his skull, Cindy leaning the other direction to dodge it.

Michael formed an anti-gravitational pull within Spirry's torso, causing all his guts to fall over his thighs and dangle above the floor. Spirry threw an uppercut, cracking Michael's jaw and staggering him.

Spirry spread his arms with a growl and dove into Michael's midsection, body movement awkward and twitchy, as if a broken puppet, but Spirry brought Michael down to the floor. He then bit around Michael's neck and thrashed him side to side, trying to rip his head off.

"Woo-whah! Whoa!" Cindy yelled, doing her best to stay on the demon's back.

Michael unleashed an upwards anti-gravitational force, raising Spirry violently, Cindy rolling over his shoulders and flopping onto the floor. Michael got up, and as Spirry fell down, Michael drove his knee into Spirry's jaw, cracking it backwards. With his other leg, Michael stomped into the back of Spirry's neck, damaging the broken neck further.

"Why can't you die!?" Michael demanded, feeling Spirry's tissue moving underfoot, and hearing it rearrange.

Michael suddenly fell over; Eleanor had tackled him from the side. She picked him up and smashed his back into the railings. He fell on his bottom, then Eleanor kneed him in the jaw and drove her needle clean through his head; even the hub and entered his skull. She then grabbed the end of the needle sticking out the back of Michael's head and twisted with both arms, wrenching Michael's head sideways until the neck cracked.

Michael forced himself up, grabbing Eleanor, lifting her, then slamming her back on his knee. Eleanor groaned aloud, and Michael pushed her off his knee. Eleanor rolled over, legs limp, muffled breathing heavy.

Despite pain and partial incapacitation, while still on the floor, Zachary, Booker, the Big Sister, and Fireman cast their fiery powers at Michael. He almost lost his footing, but he easily pummeled his wounded attackers with gravitational power and they were out. Everyone lied in blood.

"Now, where are you?" Michael scanned for Eleanor. Not even her helmet could mask her light moans and occasional whimper. She lied on her back, slowly writhing side to side, but unable to go anywhere.

Michael looked around. A marine and a Vox Beast crawled weakly. He gripped the marine with his telekinetic power, lifted him up, and slammed his head first into the floor. That was the end of him.

The Beast, unable to find a weapon, resorted to taking his helm off and throwing it at Michael. He did not defend himself, letting the helmet smash into his face. Michael cast Winter Blast, freezing the Beast in place. He chopped across the frozen head, and it shattered into many parts.

Booker regained some of his senses, shields recharging, but Michael quickly froze him in place.

"Make sure you don't try anything…"

Michael's eyeless face noticed Sofia crawling backwards, towards the elevator, blood leaking down her face.

"Ahh...of course you would try to save yourself rather than your daughter," Michael commented.

"Eleanor is _not_ my daughter," Sofia spat angrily.

When Eleanor heard that...she was glad the red light hid her face. Although she never wanted to hate Mother, memories came. When she was little. How Mother would tell her how she's special. That time when she triggered an alarm while playing around, and Mother telling her to come back at once. Skipping with Father. Watching Father shoot himself. Finding him again. Bringing him back. Fighting with him. Escaping with him. _Being_ with him… The next thing that rushed her head was sitting with Mother. Her head on Mother's shoulder. Although Mother betrayed her in Ireland... Being so close to death now, even a kind word from Mother would be nice.

 _Father, wherever you are… If there is anything after death… I'm coming._

Eleanor heard a child crying.

"Eleanor! G-g-get up! Please! I can't be alone, no! Not like this…" Cindy covered her face and wept. "Remember the cupcake I made you? I'll make you another one… Just get up, please!" Cindy heard Michael walking. She fell from fear, hugged her knees, then crawled backwards until her back hit the wall.

"And you are _not_ a Mother." Michael walked after Sofia, who continued crawling. He gave her forehead a quick stomp. The back of her head hit the floor, pain and dizziness erupting throughout her face and skull. Michael partly froze Sofia, just enough for her clothes and skin to be icy. "Don't worry, woman, I'll let you die slowly, in a manner suitable to your cold heart. _Nyeh heh heh heh heh-heh-heh-heh!_ "

A growl interrupted his laugh. He turned. Spirry crawled forth, guts dragging along, joints and spinal cord constantly popping. Michael kicked Spirry across the jaw and he face-planted. He lifted the demon with gravitational power, and slammed him head-first into the floor, blood splashing everywhere. Spirry was limp.

Michael walked towards Eleanor, who teleported. Overhearing the fleshy monsters and fanatics fighting below, Michael walked towards the mezzanine. He saw Eleanor reappear on her feet by the railings; although she tried to force herself to stand in a last attempt to survive, her broken back forced her to fall. She placed a hand on her back and writhed.

The only one who managed to stand, albeit with shaky knees and using a shotgun as a crutch, was Charles, blood leaking down his mouth. He stood in Michael's way.

"Why even try?" Michael asked. Porter spat a mouthful of blood as Michael approached him.

"For Pearl." Porter stepped forth and clubbed his shotgun in Michael's head. Michael punched Charles in the forehead and he fell over. Michael noticed several stacked crates and sandbags he had not seen before, but didn't care, then looked back at Porter as he tried to get up again. Michael spread his arms, hands open, and tilted his head.

"What did you expect? Victory?"

Porter weakly chuckled.

"Not victory… Just a few more seconds…" 

Expecting a surprise attack, Michael spun around. Somehow, Spirry was standing behind him, broken body barely able to hold itself up. Spirry breathed heavy, heart beating audibly. Michael paused. Spirry just stood there, and did nothing. He then slowly moved his hand up a little and repeatedly moved a curled first finger to the side. Thinking about the gesture, Michael turned around again, just in time to see two dainty ladies, and bright blue light.

Time itself slowed down. In a surreal moment, Michael's body expanded as two Tears opened in him, his white aura stretching and deforming. His reality distorted, the static and tuning sounds screeching so loudly they echoed. Michael split apart vertically. Both halves flew in either direction, intestines and other organs spreading apart, and the white aura and Plasmids erupting violently.

The younger Elizabeths were thrown to the floor, both convulsing and groaning, white rays of light beaming out their bodies, though Michael's body continued breaking apart in slow motion. As the tuning and static gradually subsided and diminished, Michael's body parts and organs disintegrated mid-air.

Blue Elizabeth rolled onto her back, exhausted, her aura fading away.

"He's finally gone, mother…"


	42. Chapter 42 - BioShock

Eleanor screamed as she telekinetically gripped her own spine, and realigned it into proper place. After the pain burned out, some relief came. Keeping her spine intact with a constant presence of psychokinesis, it would eventually heal. She got up and took a look around.

The cover Michael had seen phased out of reality, he was gone. The Big Sister snapped her knee into proper place with a cry, and the Elizabeths summoned stacks of ammo and supplies and helped the injured. Booker, Mother, and a standing headless Vox Beast, were frozen.

The Fireman's gauntlets smouldered as he gradually melted Booker's icy tomb. Likewise, Eleanor's hands formed steady flames as she approached Mother, and began melting the ice while breaking it apart from within with telekinesis.

"So, Mrs. Lamb, will you be keeping your word?" Spirry asked without turning around. Eleanor looked at Mother suspiciously.

"You've been rather quiet lately."

"Eleanor..." Mother said as if annoyed, "I'm cold."

Eleanor wanted to say something, but words did not form.

 _I feel... Different..._ She felt her abdomen pulse for a few seconds, as if something inside was moving. _That's different._

"Sofia!" Zachary yelled, picking himself up and limping to her. He tried to wrench the ice off her arms, but it would take more time from Eleanor's fiery Plasmid to melt it off. Mother's vision was blurry, but it slowly regained, and she saw Zachary's face. "Beautiful." He smiled, she smiled, too, albeit a little.

 _Hmmph. She never smiles for me,_ Eleanor thought, actually feeling a pang of jealousy. She then looked back, seeing Spirry walk to the mezzanine, the fleshy monsters no longer fighting, apparently. _What's he doing here?_ Many wondered the exact same thing.

"...I ain't gonna trust that sick thing. You keep an eye on 'im," Daisy said to the Zealot, who nodded and teleported.

"Took the words right out of my mouth, friend," Porter remarked. "The Thinker spoke of this...Spirry...but I would never have dreamt he was something like that."

"You did see me through the Tear in London, right?" Spirry asked with a bloody chuckle. "As for The Thinker, down here and up there... I cannot sense them. They are both disabled, for sure. Have been for some time. Someone found a way to disconnect them. No longer hacked, the machines in the sky will eventually come full-force."

"Well, that's...rather discerning..." Pinkerton Elizabeth remarked.

"Ya just so happen to know everythin' 'bout all a' dis. You have to be involved in everythin'."

"Reasonable point," Spirry replied. Daisy huffed.

"No matter what, none a' us trust ya, devil. But we ain't scared of ya, either," Daisy somewhat threatened.

"I would expect nothing less from a little nigger," the demon replied with a very serious tone. Daisy's fists tightened, though Porter was unoffended.

Greg, the Vox Beast, who was African-American, angrily stepped up to Spirry and grabbed his shoulder.

"What you playin' at?" the Beast demanded, but Daisy touched his shoulder, getting him to settle down. He let his arm drop.

"Guess it's just Spirry's massive boy-period we've been seein' constantly."

Spirry did not react, "I would think the same. Considering our situation, perhaps it is best we do not fight each other."

"That goes for you, too. Why are ya helpin' us, anyways?" the Vox Beast asked.

"Well, why not?"

"Why so?" blue Elizabeth asked.

"Because I want to." Spirry's behaviour suggested he was rather illogical and unpredictable.

Arms crossed, Eleanor turned her head, visor beaming yellow upon Spirry. She saw something odd about Spirry. Within his disembowelled torso, through the hanging organs, she could somewhat see...

 _Is that...someone inside Spirry's belly?_ Eleanor frowned. The belly was narrow but lined with bulging abs. Spirry turned, facing the railings of the mezzanine. _Huh. Someone inside an organic vessel grown into the shape of a devil? I think I was right about Spirry all along..._

Meanwhile, Tenenbaum and the old Elizabeth searched for Cindy, "Oh, thank god, there you are!" The old gal bent over with a groan, plucking Cindy from the stairs. Both bled.

"Oh, thank God you're alive and well, little one," Tenenbaum said, nearly losing balance from relief.

"Yes, I'm okay, Mama Te _nn_ - _nn_ -baum. I was looking for Little Daddy... The bad man's gone, right?"

Both old ladies nodded.

"Yes, he's gone, baby, he's gone..." old Elizabeth said caressing the child's head. Cindy hugged her doll tightly. Old Elizabeth looked at the marines, her younger counterparts using their medical skills to help them.

A few marines were so wounded, they had to be helped up. Others were outright dead. Being the most numerous, they had taken the brunt of Michael's power. Only twelve marines were left alive, some unable to stand. Those standing were taking turns performing CPR on the fallen in a last attempt to bring them back. It didn't work. Not even CPR or the Elizabeths' medical skills could save the injured marines, and four died. Only eight marines were left.

One of the marines looked at his headless lieutenant.

"Damn... Goodbye, lieutenant. Didn't expect you'd pass on the oggin like that."

"Yeh... Would've liked a tab and brew or two," a signaller commented.

Everyone viewed the demon with utmost suspicion, especially Eleanor and Booker; the Big Sisters' visors were yellow. Spirry overlooked the mezzanine, arms crossed over his front for a change, his guts hanging past his knees, and, as always, his heart audiby beat. The Zealot reappeared beside him, crows perched on their shoulders, Zealot's robe and sword leaking blood. The hooded man looked over the railings. Down below, Michael's Tears had disappeared, and the surviving fleshy monsters stood atop the numerous dead, looking up at Spirry near-motionlessly. All fleshy monsters, even those who lined down the hallway leading to Outer Persephone, repeatedly opened and closed their mouths. The constantly clicking teeth softly echoed.

"They obey you, demon?" the Zealot asked, placing the tip of his sword on the floor then both hands atop the pommel. The Zealot constantly shook from blood loss and shock, his robe drenched in blood and mapped with cuts and rips. He did not even feel pain, though.

"Usually not. For now, I can only confound them."

"Hm. What are they called?"

"Enaedonaia."

"I thought that referred to the growing flesh?"

"The fleshy growth is Enaedonai. The beings who emerge from it," Spirry looked at blue Elizabeth, who stared back uncomfortably, "or are converted by it, are Enaedonaia. It's just an extra syllable on the end."

"Hm." A pause. One of the crows on Spirry's shoulder began pecking flesh off his skull. The Zealot stroked one of his own crows, then looked at Spirry. "How do you see without eyes?"

"Imagination Where I came from, and where we will go...you did not need your eyes to see. I simply imagine the world around me, and act it out. It's not impossible to imagine imagery that happens to correlate with reality, even though I can never imagine reality for what it truly is."

"Well, you have quite the imagination... So, without skin, you're always bleeding. I can hear your heart beating, your guts are hanging out... Do you not feel pain?"

"I am always in agony. It excites me."

"Ha. Same," the Fireman commented, then noticed Booker shaking his head once his icy tomb melted. He would need some time before regaining himself.

"Good man," Spirry replied at the Fireman's comment.

Booker finished melting, shivering from being wet and cold.

"Michael...where is Michael?" Booker asked weakly, pushing a hand through his hair to get the water out.

"He's dead, Booker," blue Elizabeth answered.

"Finally. I can't believe I worked with that fucker," the Pinkerton blurted.

"So, Michael...he's dead...permanently, right? No more Michael?" Zachary asked, stretching his back, obviously hurt. Everyone was. "Why did it take so much to kill him?"

"He had a Gene Tonic that behaved like a constant Vita-Chamber. Whatever damage he sustained, quantum mechanics repaired instantly. He then reinforced this by keeping himself in a state of life and death, akin to Lady Comstock's condition, though he could not learn to raise the dead. Well, the Elizabeths opened Tears inside him, disrupting him at a quantum mechanical level, overriding his Tonic and Siren-effect, which resulted in particle physics annihilation. He and the Tears were converted into photons. It was enough power comparable to a nuclear reactor, though almost all that power entered the Tears just as they closed, fortunately."

The Vox, Booker and blue Elizabeth had not much of an idea of what Spirry was talking about.

"Just glad he's gone. Too bad I still don't have complete control of Tears..." Pinkerton Elizabeth remarked.

"You never will until Black Sun is destroyed," Spirry commented.

"Then they're our next target. How do we reach them?" Zachary asked.

"Take the bathysphere, go down, down, down...into the angelic abyss. Through the byss you must go. Beyond that lies all you wish to know."

"You seem to know everything, conveniently. What are you? The Devil?" the Zealot asked. Spirry looked back at him, though without skin, eyes, cheeks or lips, no facial expression could form.

"Satan? Asmodeus? Iblis? Ahriman? Kali? Apep? No. And I am not aware of their existence in this world, or any others relating here."

"What about your world? Do they exist there?"

A pause.

"Maybe. As you have realized...where I come from...a place that should not exist for you. But...I do not remember my world, I left long ago, as it was destroyed somehow, yet I can't remember how... In your reality, time flows in a line, but weaves through many versions of the worlds it passes. In my world, times flows as a coil, and there are no additional versions of my world... A single place where time has no meaning, for the past and future could happen at the same time. We were all set within a never-ending constance, until it was destroyed. Perhaps the laws of my world are going into yours, or the laws of your world traversed into my own."

Another pause.

"Spirry...do you believe in God? Do you know if He's...real?" blue Elizabeth asked nervously.

"I do not see Him. But yes, I do. My sister, La'Seire, also believes...in a god of your world."

Another pause.

"Huh. What will you do now?" blue Elizabeth asked.

"I will wait, until Eleanor sees her home," Spirry tilted his head in Eleanor's direction, she looking at him. "Then, she will be born again, and I will be reborn. After that...perhaps the next version of me... No, the other me that I cannot find, will be found. This is the only way to stop Black Sun, and finally sever the link of my world to yours."

Spirry felt someone grab his arm and budge him, but he did not react.

"Mr. Spirry, we need to talk, now," Eleanor said. Spirry ignored her. "Why did you attack me in the...dream? Why would you help us all of a sudden?"

"Ah, you are confused, Ms. Lamb. The dreams you've been having of me are not of the past, but of the future, of a reality to come, one that manipulates both past and future." Spirry gestured to the side. "As the Dutchman has experienced. But the version of me you had seen was not the same as me now." He briefly tilted his head to the Elizabeths. "Consider it like the effects of two Tears, coming together, and recreating themselves into a new reality. My future results in me losing my mind, and then...your reality will merge with another, courtesy of Black Sun. And so it is, the next me... No, I must be reborn."

"Be reborn? Alright, so I can't get you to make sense. But, right after I escaped Rapture...you changed me in the dream. Made me go crazy. How did you?"

"Back then, I was...stronger. I am still being mentally drained. I thought it was only Michael, but now, I realize it is also someone else. The closer I get to the source of this, the stronger the effect... It must be that other me, one that I have never found. After I overcame Michael's control... Well, I do not think I can perform something like that a second time. We have already ran out of time, Eleanor. Go."

Eleanor crossed her arms, "That's it? That's the explanation I get after all this? Hmph. I have a feeling you're not telling me the whole story."

"Oh, you will feel it inside, Eleanor. Or, if not inside, you will feel the machines on the outside. There's nothing else to explain. It will happen. You will know."

" _Ughh..._ Talking to you..." Eleanor dismissively waved an arm at her big friend.

"Why does it matter, Ms. Lamb? We're already out of time. There is nothing to do now."

"Don't worry. I am a foremost expert at breaking rules."

"Then don't let me keep you. Go ahead and...explore."

"I just want to know what your purpose is. You went through all this, for what? Because you bonded with me? Because you want me to see Rapture before we are reborn? And then what?"

"Go figure it out!" Spirry almost yelled, the Murderous Crows on him fluttered their wings.

"I'm not like you, Mr. Spirry, I can't know things I don't know. You cannot expect others to be semi-omnipotent like yourself."

"The Luteces were a bit omnipotent," Pinkerton Elizabeth remarked. "But didn't you stop them?"

"Indeed, but I could not kill them. A shame, really, I wanted them dead. I don't remember why, but I concluded they were to blame for everything. I could only entrap them in my world."

"How did you entrap those extradimensional time travellers?" Eleanor asked.

"You already know of the Cipher. The Luteces told you everything. So, why should I explain anything to you?" His question made Eleanor raise an eyebrow.

"I do not-"

"Let's go!" Booker interrupted, grabbing Eleanor's shoulder to get her attention. "We can't waste our time talking to this idiot. We have to get going, now!"

"That you do. I cannot maintain confusion of the Enaedonaia much longer. Go, before they regain themselves, and eat you." Spirry sucked in his guts and pushed the rest in. Everyone except him took their leave, the crows on Spirry's shoulders following the Zealot.

Spirry leapt over the railings. He landed hard with a wet crunch, his blood splashing outwards from impact. He walked through the fleshy monsters, pushing and shoving through them. Sometimes, a few bit him, but the damage was mild.

"Fine." Eleanor and the others headed to the elevator. Memories of her fleeing with Father came back. _I would have saved you if I could..._

Only several individuals could go up the elevator at once. The non-combatants and most injured went first, the others guarding.

Few by few, the Enaedonaia snapped out of their ecstasy. Those that did, crawled over those still affected, going after Spirry, who kept pushing his way through. Eventually, he reached the end of the horde, and turned around to face them, spreading his arms.

"Alright. Who's next?" The ensuing roars and hisses echoed wildly.

The last people to enter the elevator were Daisy, Booker, two marines, and the Fireman. Eleanor, the Big Sister, and the Zealot remained outside, overhearing the growls incoming. The Big Sister wailed.

"Go! We'll hold them off!" Eleanor exclaimed as a portion of fleshy monsters appeared, and charged down the hallway. While the elevator doors closed, Daisy knelt and fired her carbine, Booker throwing a Possession trap and the Fireman Devil's Kiss overhead.

The Zealot unleashed a murderous flock. The Big Sisters hurled fireballs. The Possession trap triggered, sending several Enaedonaia against their own. Eleanor and the Zealot continued casting their powers, until the Possessed Enaedonaia were trampled. Dozens of fleshy monsters charged.

The Zealot and the Big Sisters teleported on the last second, and they reappeared in the upper level, where the fleshy monsters would not reach anytime soon. The elevator reached the top, and those inside headed for the already crowded bathysphere. Everyone except the Big Sisters went inside.

"Eleanor?" Cindy called.

"We're going swimming. Stay safe!" Eleanor replied. The bathysphere closed, and it descended. The Big Sisters looked at each other, then teleported at the same time, reappearing in the waters.

Down below, the Big Sisters could see the Luminescent Biomass, as if an alien world waiting for them. Eleanor pointed down to it, her Sister nodding. They swam down, passing the bathysphere. Soon, they descended past Persephone, the glowing whiteness far, far below, in the depths of the trench...

 _Where is that abyssal monster? I can't see him..._

The Big Sisters swam side by side, like a pair of dolphins. They felt their suits tighten against their skin. The pressure, and coldness, increased every minute. Decompression sickness, barotrauma, and narcosis gradually came, but would not stop the Big Sisters. Occasionally, Eleanor tried to scratch her skin, zapping with itchiness, numbness, and tingling. Her brains sloshed in her head, and her joints burned. Even her tits ached. But they kept going down into the abyssal whiteness that hurt their eyes.

Eleanor found it rather ironic that, the further she swam down the trench, the brighter things became, like a sun in an abyss. Whatever the Luminescent Biomass was, she would find out.

 _Why do I feel like I'm being watched?_ Eleanor's visor turned yellow, but her Sister's remained green.

Above the Big Sisters, the bathysphere sometimes creaked.

"That better not crush..." Eleanor commented, then noticed her friend's visor beamed red. Something rammed into the bathysphere, the groaning steel echoing.

The Big Sisters twirled to see what happened, helmets red. The bathysphere spun and thrashed to the side, everyone inside falling over. Eleanor swam back-down and looked around, her Sister swatted aside.

"Mary!"

Eleanor gasped as four gigantic yellow eyes beamed into her. She was face-to-face with the abyssal monster, it had come from above. Its body was both angelically translucent and radiantly white now, all its flesh and ADAM glowing like the Luminescent Biomass.

The Lovecraftian beast let off a groan akin to a thousand whales as it leaned into Eleanor. The sound waves and bubbles alone unnerved her, but the four beaming yellow lights caused her to go limp. Her red visor stopped beaming; so much of her own blood gushed out her mouth and nose it covered the inside of her visor. Her inactive body reverberated with tuning and static noises, and an aura of electricity formed. She wanted to do something, but all she did was go into a fetal position, and she sank limply.

The other Big Sister swam into the abyssal monster's face while screaming, ramming her entire arm into its left pupil, needle ripping it open, then she unleashed a telekinetic blast that jerked the eyeball. The monster moaned, swatting itself in the face, but the Big Sister swam away easily. She looked down, visor turning green as she watched Eleanor sink. If Eleanor descended too far, the pressure would crush her suit.

The Big Sister teleported underneath Eleanor, pushing her with both hands to carry her up the water. Sensing the Lovecraftian monster going for another attack, the Big Sister launched Eleanor with a psychokinetic blast, then teleported away to avoid the abyssal monster's gigantic hand.

The Big Sister was in quite a predicament. She teleported here and there, skirmishing against the monster while keeping Eleanor afloat whenever she could. The Big Sister could read the mighty beast's movements easily enough, swimming out the way of its hands and jaws. The immense lengths of skyborne machinery connected to its arms and spine held it in the water as if some sort of horrific, angelic puppet.

While the Big Sister protected Eleanor and kept the abyssal monster busy, the bathysphere soon regained balance once the Pinkerton took to the controls. Everyone inside observed the skirmish outside.

"There's no way we can kill something _that_ big!" Daisy exclaimed.

"Not to mention we are rather stuck and underwater..." Cindy squeaked, and then the abyssal monster accidentally struck the bathysphere, sending it spinning down.

"Aw, _shhhit_!" Zachary cursed.

"Eleanor would have to use the new Plasmid against that thing's heart or brain to kill it!" Porter suggested. "If she could get inside, of course..."

"Oh, Eleanor, I hope you're alright..." Tenenbaum lamented. She felt someone touch her hand. It was Cindy. Tenenbaum took her hand.

Outside, the Big Sister continued her combo of teleportation, psychokinesis, and needle-attacks while pushing Eleanor up, but the struggle was heavy. To make things worse, lengths of skyborne machinery began slamming down from above, sending bubbles and waves powerfully. About a dozen lengths of skyborne machinery appeared, moving through the white waters like giant mechanical eels.

The Big Sister made a high-pitched wheeze of distress. She spun and twirled, dodging the machinery and the monster's hands. She teleported above the monster's head, and it looked around with a grunt. After a few seconds, the Big Sister teleported underneath Eleanor and swam off with her as fast as she could, swerving and zigzagging to evade the skyborne (now underwater) machinery.

She turned her red helmet, and saw something else red. It was Spirry, swimming with his limbs and wings, without any diving apparatus. Murky redness trailed wherever he went, but he seemed alright. He made a few hand signals to the Big Sister as they swam past each other.

 _You too, Apocatastasis?_ Spirry thought. The abyssal monster groaned, beaming all four lights into Spirry. But he did not react, for he was without eyes, without mediums to transfer the quantum physical force into him. _Everything I create goes against me... But not even you can escape your constance._

The devil twirled, evading a mighty arm swung at him. Spirry dodged a few mechanical lengths as well, his wings enabling great stroking leverage. Once he reached the monster's forehead, he began burrowing into it. Rearing, the monster smacked its own forehead, but Spirry had already left that spot.

Rearing again, the monster bellowed, a huge Tear forming on its wound, and several mechanical lengths burst forth. The machinery wriggled after Spirry.

"Oh, shhhit!" the demon cursed, muffled voice producing mostly bubbles rather than noise. He dodged the two incoming machines, then grabbed the third one by the tip, firmly gripping the hook and feeling it rotate and wheeze as it drove him backwards.

The monster swung an arm, but hit the mechanical length driving Spirry, knocking it off him. This gave Spirry an idea, and he swam about to and fro wildly, trying to get the mechanical lengths to criss-cross across the monster.

Amidst Spirry's plot, one of the machines struck the bathysphere, everyone inside falling. The vessel creaked as it was entwined by the mechanical length.

"Elizabeth! We could use a Tear right about now!" Booker yelled as he picked himself.

"You think I'm not trying!?"

"Let's work together!" the Pinkerton shouted.

The Elizabeths huddled and put their hands together, trying to open a Tear. A Tear began to form, the unsteady volume zipping lights everywhere, but not big enough for anyone to enter.

"Where can we go!?" Zachary yelled, looking around as the bathysphere creaked and groaned. At the other side of the glass, many passengers saw redness swimming around.

"Is that...Videre?" Booker asked himself. Sure enough, there certainly was a smaller fleshy monster swimming around, a Tear always floating above him, small mechanical lengths connected to his spinal cord and arms.

Soon, several more fleshy monsters swam to the scene. They latched onto the mechanical length, trying to dislodge it from the Bathysphere. Then, an immense fleshy tube arose from below, gradually wrapping around the mechanical length. The muscles expanded, the mechanical length creaked, but gradually, pressure was removed from the Bathysphere.

"That must be Tongue!" blue Elizabeth exclaimed.

"And it looks like he's doing enough to prevent this thing from being crushed!" Booker stated.

Outside, Videre swam above the Bathysphere, latching onto the vessel as it turned side to side amidst the struggle. He opened a Tear beside the mechanical length, then moved it sideways through the length of machinery. When it closed, the mechanical length was severed. The Bathysphere continued sinking, though the steel creaked and groaned continuously

"There!" Pinkerton Elizabeth operated the controls.

"If this thing breaks, I'm killing whoever designed Bathyspheres!" the Fireman stated.

"She'll hold!" the Pinkerton promised.

Meanwhile, the Big Sister continued swimming with Eleanor, who had yet to recover. The skyborne machinery whiplashed noisily; they reached their full length. The Big Sister flipped and then swam downwards.

Elsewhere, Spirry continued fighting his overwhelmingly gigantic foe, creator versus created. Spirry often dodged the machinery and the monster's hands and jaws, swimming forth to claw the face or head open here and there, gradually mapping the monstrosity with scars. At times, Spirry was hit by a glancing blow from the monster or the mechanical lengths, bones and tissue busting open, but he seemed to heal quickly, albeit never beyond a skinned state.

His original plan of crisscrossing machinery in the monster's path somewhat worked. They got in the way, but the monster just past through them. Amidst the duel, Spirry latched onto the monster's left eye, and rammed both arms in-between the eyeball and eye socket. Gripping the back of the eyeball with his claws, Spirry began wrenching the thing out. The monster howled, rearing back; Spirry kicked and swam off before he was grabbed, mechanical lengths writhing after him.

The monster reared further with a mighty howl. A Tear formed in its forehead, and a human-faced, giant Sea Slug emerged, blood gushing out. The Sea Slug slipped out and swam off, and a second popped out halfway, squirming to and fro.

"What the fuck?" Spirry commented. "How much ADAM do you need to survive?"

The second Sea Slug swam towards Spirry, groaning loudly. The demon just laughed bubbles. He swam into the Sea Slug, affixing his claws and talons on its face. He buried his teeth into the forehead, and bit a chunk of skull out. ADAM-infused blood gushed out. The devil plunged his muzzle into the head, eating brains.

A mechanical length torpedoed to Spirry. He slid off the Sea Slug as it limply descended. He leaned back while twirling, the hook ripped his torso open. He then grabbed onto the length and was dragged along with it, avoiding the few other machines after him. Just as one lunged at him, Spirry pulled himself around the one he gripped. One mechanical length rammed into another, getting caught in it. The two other mechanical lengths did likewise. Once Spirry swam off, the machinery flicked after him, and immediately entangled in one another.

"That'll slow them down. Wait, where are the girls?" Spirry looked around, but could not see the Big Sisters. He swam off to find them, the abyssal monster distracted by its injuries.

Soon, Spirry swam upwards from underneath the Big Sisters. The Big Sister stopped, Eleanor still debilitated. The Big Sister's visor was yellow, but she allowed Spirry to swim over and place a hand on Eleanor's helmet.

"Eleanor, wake up..." Spirry's hand glowed yellow. Eleanor's electric aura dissipated, and she unraveled in the Big Sister's arms.

"Oww, my head..." Eleanor used her telekinesis to wipe her own blood off the visor. She noticed Spirry gesturing downwards.

 _Ms. Lamb, time to go._

 _Very well, Mr. Spirry._

The three heard a muffled roar. They turned at the same time, and saw the abyssal monster swimming towards them, about twenty mechanical lengths swimming along with it.

"How can we kill that thing!?" Eleanor asked herself. _With Porter's new Plasmid... I'll have to cast it directly into its heart or brain!_ "Spirry! Distract that thing while I find a way to kill it."

 _As you wish. If you kill Apocatastasis, Black Sun's presence in this world will be greatly debilitated._

Eleanor nodded at her Sister, and they swam off together while Spirry headed towards the abyssal monster.

To Spirry's surprise, several fleshy monsters joined the fight. They swam into the side of the monster and began burrowing. Videre swam to the scene, opening a Tear between his hands that moved with him. A shockwave similar to the Siren erupted from Videre's Tear, but it moved in one direction like a beam, striking the monster in the face. A few mechanical lengths lunged at Videre, but his Tear expanded and then aligned at an angle; the machinery entered the Tears awkwardly, entering another world instead of piercing Videre.

 _Who the hell is that? He would have been within Enaedonai for centuries to control himself. How did he learn to use Tears?_

Spirry had little time to think, as a few mechanical lengths swung towards him. He dodged them, then dodged the monster's hand, and the skirmish continued.

Meanwhile, the Big Sisters swam around the action. They looked at each other, nodded, and teleported. They reappeared somewhere else, standing on...solid ground? The Big Sisters turned, looking through a translucent wall flanked by two immense glowing yellow lights. They could see Videre, Spirry, and the fleshy monsters outside, combating the monster and machinery, though a few fleshy monsters were skewered and then ripped apart.

Spirry swam into the abyssal monster's forehead, latching on, and stared back at Eleanor. He cocked his head. He then slid his thumb across his neck. Eleanor nodded. After Spirry swam off to avoid the machinery, the Big Sisters turned, overlooking the rest of the monster's brain.

"Let's get started," Eleanor said. She then got Porter's Plasmid ready. Steaming ADAM dripped from her hands, patting onto the brain and sizzling. She unleashed a wave of it upon the prefrontal cortex. The exterior of the brain quickly began bubbling while turning into jelly. The Big Sister cast fireballs and telekinetic blasts at the brain.

Outside, Videre and his fleshy monsters, and Spirry, took the advantage, dodging the machinery and then clawing at the monster's face. Videre swam into an eyeball, clutching against it, then opened a Tear. A smaller mechanical length shot out the Tear, impaling the eyeball. The monster screamed, thrashing its head to the side while slapping Videre away. He would have been crushed, but the mechanical length drilled into the monster's hand, allowing Videre to swim away, pursued by a few skyborne machines.

Back inside the monster, the Big Sisters proceeded to throwing fireballs into the back of the monster's two giant eyeballs further up its skull, damaging the optic nerves. The monster reared with a howl, clutching its head; the movement caused the Big Sisters to roll over. The monster began shaking its head to and fro, the Big Sisters rolling side to side clumsily. While they rolled about in steaming ADAM and melting brains, they blasted fireballs in all directions, anything to maximise damage.

Mental connection remaining, the Big Sisters teleported at the same time, reappearing within the monster's chest. Eleanor felt the beating heart continuously jerk her forwards and backwards. It was very warm inside the monster's torso, and Eleanor found it quite odd she was swimming in blood and clogging up an artery. It felt rather ironic to be inside an organic entity that was translucent and bright.

"Oh, heavens, this would be a Little Sister's heaven! I can smell the roses even from in my helmet!" Eleanor commented, already all evil and dirty. Although quite tired, her body was getting used to Porter's new Plasmid, and being surrounded by ADAM, her body gradually absorbed it and allowed her to regenerate. Her hands steamed with ADAM as the Plasmid charged, and she blasted it down the artery. The crystalline blood and tissue immediately began melting and becoming gelatinous.

The Big Sisters were kicking and needle-punching everywhere, anything to cause as much damage and possible, like parasites. The only offensive Plasmids were psychokinetic in nature, and they soon felt the monster convulsing and thrashing. An organic roller coaster did not deter the Big Sisters.

Eleanor felt herself jerk backwards. The Big Sisters felt a rush of coldness; they were now outside the monster, a big Tear beaming out its chest. A few mechanical lengths emerged. The Big Sisters looked at each other, then teleported back in the monster's skull.

After unleashing another wave of anti-Enaedonai Plasmid, Eleanor and her Sister continued casting fiery Plasmids. The monster grabbed its head and flailed it side to side. The Big Sisters rolled to and fro, the surface of the brain similar to mud, blood and mushy brains flopping everywhere.

Eleanor rammed her needle and feet into the brains to stabilize herself, her Sister hurling fireballs like crazy while flopping about. Eleanor rammed her free arm into the mashy brains, casting a fireball within it. The explosion caused a lot of brains and blood to erupt, splattering upon her already drenched suit. The third explosion caused her arm to blow out the brain.

Eleanor reared, hand engulfed with flames, ready to ram her arm back in the hole. To her surprise, the fleshy serpent suddenly emerged with a mighty screech, so loud that Eleanor jumped in her suit. Her ears ringed with pain, and all of a sudden, she was inside the serpent's mouth.

Before the serpent could clamp its teeth, Eleanor simply teleported out; the beast bit nothing. Reappearing above the serpent, Eleanor rammed her feet into the back of its head, pinning it down. Feeling it squirming, Eleanor kept the serpent in check with telekinesis, and would have engulfed it, but the monster thrashed powerfully, movement throwing Eleanor and the Big Sister off.

The serpent shook its head and slithered further out, eyes beaming yellow, fangs drooling. Knowing that she could be debilitated by creepy yellow eyes, Eleanor stabilized herself with psychokinesis, and launched fireballs at the serpent's face. The flames erupted, the beast screeched.

While the serpent writhed from flames, Eleanor darted forth, wobbling heavily from the abyssal monster's thrashing. She leapt, ramming her needle into the serpent's forehead. The beast hissed and flailed its head into Eleanor, knocking her down. Her Sister teleported above the serpent's head, landing on it and repeatedly stabbing it with her needle while casting fiery Plasmids at point-blank range.

"Keep him busy, Mary!" Eleanor cast another wave of Porter's Plasmid. The veins in her eyes, and under her skin, bulged and burned. "Aagghh!" The overuse took a heavy toll on Eleanor. There was only so much her body could adapt to. Nevertheless, the Plasmid splashed upon the slushy brains, liquefying the surface.

Instantly, the Big Sisters felt themselves bouncing side to side wildly, the monster in quite an agonizing state. The fleshy serpent hissed, trying to regain balance. Like an immense parasite, the serpent wriggled further out the brain, perhaps thirty feet long, slithering after the Big Sisters, who launched fireballs at it whenever they could amidst rolling about.

Rearing, the serpent's fangs extended, and it lunged. At the same time, the Big Sisters cast telekinetic blasts at the serpent, striking it with such force its head flailed backwards and slammed against the brain. The meaty snake lied on the side of its head, dazed.

Eleanor teleported, amplifying herself with psychokinesis upon reappearing, drove her feet into the snake's yellow eye. The beast screeched, then the other Big Sister mimicked Eleanor, smashing her feet into the serpent's neck.

"Try to hypnotize me with your eyes! Just try!"

The Big Sisters rammed their needles in the serpent while slamming fiery Plasmids into it. The snake howled, writhing underfoot, but managed to slip away and recede back into the slushy brain amidst a flurry of fireballs. It was not long until the abyssal monster had another burst of energy, and shook itself wildly

After the shaking subsided, the Big Sisters got up. To Eleanor's surprise, she saw...

"Crows?" Eleanor turned.

"I saw you in here, so I followed suite!"

The Murderous Crows dove into the brains, ripping it open further and flicking blood and brains as if small children playing in a puddle. The Zealot even stabbed and chopped into the brains, the Big Sisters doing their things.

After blasting the hole in the prefrontal cortex further, Eleanor dove headfirst into the brain, lunging both arms into the sizzling tissue. Both hands cast a gravitational blast, spreading the meat open greatly and feeling an eruption of hot tissue stick to her suit and visor. She cast Porter's Plasmid directly into the brain, screaming from pain. She lost all strength and just plopped into the steaming stew of liquefying brains.

The abyssal monster stopped thrashing, perhaps braindead. Spirry took the opportunity and twirled past a few skyborne machines, latching onto the monster's face, and began ripping into the eyeball. A mechanical length shot into his back, then pulled him away. Videre and his fleshy monsters continued their assault, Videre drilling with Tear-conjured mechanical lengths. Most of the fleshy monster entered the skin, but a few were hit by machinery and pulled out.

Videre himself was hit by one of the machines, his own mechanical lengths wrapping around it and keeping it from killing him. Tongue's giant tube swung into the machine, muscles bulging over the machinery and pulled it off Videre. He summoned another length of machinery to drill into the abyssal monster's head, damaging the brains further. Inside, he could see the Big Sister drag Eleanor out the prefrontal cortex, the Zealot and his crows continuing the fight.

Videre turned his head just as Spirry swam by and clutched the monster next to him. Spirry's body was ripped open here and there, but he seemed mostly alright.

"Did she damage the heart?" the demon asked, Videre shrugged. Spirry grabbed onto Videre's drilling machines, and pulled himself into the hole it made. Pulling on the machinery, Spirry entered the head, water gushing into the skull.

Spirry joined in damaging the brain, ripping it open as he walked. It was not long until the waters began filling the skull. Spirry noticed the Big Sisters, Eleanor sitting upright, her Sister holding her back straight.

"The brain will be defunct! But you need to destroy the heart to truly kill Apocatastasis!" Spirry yelled. Eleanor was coughing, but nodded. "I will continue damaging the brain, go destroy the heart!"

"And I need to get back into the Bathysphere!" the Zealot exclaimed, all his Murderous Crows flying back into him, and he teleported as the waters began filling up the skull.

The Big Sisters submerged by the rising waters. They teleported, and reappeared back in the vessels of the heart. Warmth rushed their cold bodies. The Big Sister instantly began casting psychokinetic blasts to rupture the heart more, but Eleanor limply drifted in the blood. Turning the valves, Eleanor's needle sucked some blood, then she consumed it. The rush of potent ADAM burned her insides, but she felt awesome.

Refuelled with endless ADAM, Eleanor charged Anti-Enaedonai with both hands. She kept charging until all her veins leaked with steaming ADAM, then she unleashed it all down the left ventricle. Inevitably, the heart chamber pumped the Anti-Enaedonai through the aortic valve, and subsequently, into the rest of the body.

"We've done it, Mary!" She could see the walls of the heart violently contract and expand. "He's having a heart attack! Let's get out of here!"

The Big Sisters teleported out the monster. Reappearing outside, they turned around, seeing the monster's four yellow eyes dimming, mapped with cracks and steaming ADAM. The monster clutched its head and chest, convulsed, then began sinking like a rock.

All the mechanical lengths stopped chasing after Videre and the fleshy monsters, and went limp. Spirry burst through the monster's left eye socket, pushing out the eyeball as he did so, the eye floating upwards on the end of the optic nerve.

Everyone just watched the Lovecraftian monster sink into the angelic abyss, the skyborn machinery connected to it loose and shaky. The monster disappeared within the whiteness.

"He's gone." Eleanor turned her head and saw Tongue and his vessel floating by. The tube was writhing and twitching, and then the fleshy serpent burst through its tip screeching wildly. Clamped inside its mouth was Tongue. Without arms, what could he do? The serpent shut its mouth, shearing Tongue in half.

"How did you get there?" Eleanor asked.

 _Similarly to how you teleported into Apocatastasis, save he used a Tear._ Spirry's thoughts replied. _Eleanor, machines reise from the depths..._ Sure enough, perhaps twenty mechanical lengths arose from below. Eleanor dodged them easily enough though Videre and a fleshy monster were hit.

The fleshy serpent writhed out Tongue's organic vessel, and swam along quite quickly. Eleanor figured it swam twice as fast as a Big Sister, but the snake kept his distance for now, leaving everyone to evade the newly-arisen machines. The serpent charged, but Eleanor used psychokinesis to wrench its jaw open, then threw Anti-Enaedonai down its mouth. With a harsh hiss, the serpent swam off.

Everyone heard a mighty roar echo from below. Bubbles rose like crazy, and the machinery shook and creaked as their puppet pulled itself up. Three yellow eyes beamed upwards from below. Stuck within the monster's mouth was the Bathysphere. The monster often coughed and gagged, but the Bathysphere was caged behind its teeth.

"How the hell did that happen?" Spirry asked, then dodged a machine from the depths.

"I thought you said it would die!?" Eleanor yelled at Spirry, evading a few machines aimed at her.

"I thought so!"

"We must continue the fight," Videre remarked, having freed himself by Tear-cutting the machines. Everyone swam downwards...

Meanwhile, inside the monster's mouth, the Bathysphere bounced around against its teeth. The passengers likewise bounced around.

"We could really use a Tear right about now!" Booker yelled.

"Kind of hard when I'm flopping around!" blue Elizabeth exclaimed.

"Try harder!"

"All this thrashing is pure hell for my joints..." old Elizabeth grumbled.

Blue Elizabeth, Tenenbaum, Zachary, and a marine ended up faceplanting the glass door, everyone else piling against the adjacent walls, Cindy somehow ending up on Zachary's head. The Zealot decided to teleport but remain teleporting.

"Ow! Don't touch me, your armour's hot!" the Pinkerton whined at the Fireman.

"Almost got it!" blue Elizabeth exclaimed, a Tear forming just outside the glass door. "Dammit! It's on the wrong side!"

The Tear greatly expanded, Elizabeth gasping when something emerged from it.

"Songbird!?"

The Siren effect-infused, barnacled Songbird burst forth out the Tear, alongside the Bathysphere. Despite his ghostly aura, he looked quite damaged, though here he was, swimming out the Tear. He turned his head, looking inside the submersible, white rays beaming out his broken eye pieces.

"Wait, is he the same Songbird when-" Pinkerton Elizabeth's sentence was cut-off when the Bathysphere clanked.

He squawked as something pulled him halfway back in the Tear. He looked back and forced himself out, the black entity's arms grasping his legs.

"Songbird! Get out! The Tear's closing!" blue Elizabeth cried.

Songbird wailed, swimming with his arms and wings, and kicking. The black entity howled, but Songbird squeezed out the Tear as it closed, the winged monster's claws scraping down his hull. The Tear closed, chopping off the black entity's arms and leaving it behind.

As the entity's dismembered arms floating and bled, Songbird noticed the abyssal monster next to him, pulling itself up the suspended mechanical lengths. Songbird tilted backwards, rather surprised, but he sprang to action.

Songbird gripped the monster's teeth and began snapping them, breaking them two at a time. The Lovecraftian beast growled. Ripping more teeth out, Songbird grabbed the Bathysphere and pulled it out the mouth. The monster turned to the side from pain, then swiped a massive arm. Songbird shielded himself with his wings while hugging the Bathysphere. The impact hit Songbird and sent him spiralling down.

Regaining his senses, Songbird dove, pulling the Bathysphere with him while evading the monster's other arm. The Big Sisters, Spirry, Videre and several fleshy monsters joined in the last assault.

The mechanical lengths sprang back to life, everyone dodging them, but Spirry got cut across the chest. The Big Sisters used telekinesis to stifle or divert the incoming machinery.

 _Eleanor, connection reestablished. Hacking foreign machines now..._ The Thinker's voice cheeped in Eleanor's mind.

 _Thanks I'll take all the help I can get, Thinker._

The skyborne machinery in the area slowed down, only swaying. There was now a clear, easy route to the monster. Eleanor observed Songbird toss the Bathysphere upward, above the monster's head, then he clawed at the monster's forehead. It was not long until Songbird ripped through the skull and made a complete mess. Spirry, Videre and the fleshy monsters joined in the ripping, whereas the Big Sisters teleported within the skull to utilize telekinetic bursts to further damage the brain, about a third of it dissolved into mush.

The abyssal monster groaned heavily, weakly raising his arms, but Songbird entered his skull. The Buzzard dug his way down the brain, ripping it asunder with a mighty scream.

Apocatastasis went limp, and once again, sank like a rock. Songbird continued digging until he reached the brainstem, and ripped it off the spinal cord. There was no way to survive this.

"We've done it for sure this time!" Eleanor exclaimed. The Big Sisters teleported out.

Songbird exited the head, and then he and everyone else swam off to regroup with the Bathysphere. Eleanor swam in front of Songbird and gestured downwards. He nodded. Down everyone went...

* * *

 _Hmm. The Sinker was a submersible, at first used to lower supplies and workers to the ocean floor. Eventually, it became a permanent structure, set within sediments and rock, allowing additional work farther into the ocean floor and unexpected caverns. Undoubtedly, this was how they uncovered the Luminescent Biomass, and the strange life that evolved from it... Huh. There's no way divers could work down here without being blinded. The biomass must be growing..._

Eventually, Eleanor could sense Rapture's infrastructure, and feel the heat of lava here and there. Everyone was undeterred.

 _Eleanor, allow me to guide you,_ The Thinker's voice sounded in her head. Eleanor could simply feel where to go, and she guided everyone else through the caves and brightness.

 _What should I expect, Thinker?_

 _Unknown. A presence prevents me from analyzing whatever possibility awaits you. It seems that this Luminescent Biomass is biochemical as well as quantum mechanical, a synthesis of the two. I need to focus on hacking the machines. I will keep them as inactive as possible._

Songbird had to keep holding the Bathysphere to guide it through the cave network, otherwise, the vessel would risk hitting lava or diamond-hard rock.

Eleanor noticed Videre swimming after her. She looked at him.

* * *

"Sitting in this tub sure is boring," Booker remarked.

Everyone was sitting, exhausted from so much stress and exertion. Sofia lied with her head resting against Zachary's shoulder, sleeping like a log.

The Bookers and Fireman each had produced a passive form of Devil's Kiss to keep the vessel warm.

"At least nothing's trying to kill us for a change," blue Elizabeth commented. Booker somewhat chuckled.

"We better get through this," a marine said.

"Hah. Wouldn't wanna go through all this just to fail," Daisy said.

Tenenbaum sighed deeply. She was afraid and nervous. Cindy gently grabbed Mama's hand and smiled at her.

"Little Daddy's not afraid, Mama Tenenbaum!" Cindy stated. Tenenbaum and old Elizabeth smiled.

But then everyone gasped.

"Are we falling!?" Zachary yelled.

Everyone's guts rose. Songbird gripped the Bathysphere as he, the Big Sisters, Spirry, Videre, and several fleshy monsters gradually disappeared in the whiteness. Eleanor's ears popped and rang, and she felt like she was falling.

"Here we go! Get ready!" Spirry bellowed, his voice no longer affected by water. He spread his wings and glided downwards.

Eleanor heard Songbird's wings whoosh overhead.

"This is it! All or nothing!" Eleanor exclaimed.

The whiteness below slowly churned, gradually resembling an endless Tear. A strange mix of darkness and dark light formed, as if smouldering shadows and shadowy flames formed in the shape of a sun, but rimmed with yellow flames.

And they entered Black Sun.

This place was horrible, roofed with the appearance of smouldering shadows and shadowy fire, though it cast enough light to see. An endless steppe of red sand was below everyone, and off in the distance, a ruined city. Harsh winds screeched, blowing plumes of sand about.

Songbird landed heavily, placing the Bathysphere on the red sand. The Big Sisters teleported before hitting the ground, reappearing safely. Spirry swooped down and landed, but Videre and the fleshy monsters landed clumsily, joints popping and bones snapping. Despite injuries, the fleshy beings got up and began walking.

The Bathysphere opened, and everyone inside stepped out. All the girls except Sofia lifted a hand to their mouths, the men looking around.

"What the..." Zachary said.

"...hell?" Booker finished. Spirry walked from the side. "Oh, for the love of... Ugh... Now where are we?"

"Well, what does that city remind you of?" Spirry asked.

"What's this?" Cindy chirped, moving some sand away, and underneath it, some sort of skull.

"Hm?" The Pinkerton felt her shoe hit something. She bent over to investigate, uncovering what appeared to be a fossilized seashell.

Tenenbaum and old Elizabeth went to Cindy to take a look at the skull she found.

"What's that? A shark skull?" Booker asked.

"No, it is, it is..." Tenenbaum said.

"A...whale's skull?" old Elizabeth suggested.

"Wait, what? We're in a desert..." Zachary said.

"Unless..." Eleanor said, taking a few steps towards the ruined city off in the distance. The sands were dotted with tiny fossils, especially that of seashells and trilobites. Eleanor stopped and just stared at the city.

Amidst bewilderment, the Vox, marines, and others, all looked at Spirry. He clasped his hands behind his back. Videre and the seven fleshy monsters with him did not stop walking towards the city.

"What's that expression, again? A day late and a dollar short?" Spirry remarked.

"Whatever. Where the hell are we?" Zachary demanded.

"Zachary, that city over there...it's Rapture," Pinkerton Elizabeth said.

Her words created a long silence.

"But where's all the water?" Cindy whined, giving the sand a little kick "Big Daddy has to go up and fix it!"

Cindy's cuteness made Songbird gently wheeze. He knelt, taking a good look at Booker, Zachary, and the Elizabeths.

"I missed you, too," blue Elizabeth whispered, giving Songbird's leg a hug. She looked up at him, "How did you get mother's power, anyways?"

The Buzzard's shoulders dropped. He sadly looked at Booker again.

"What?"

Songbird beckoned Booker.

"Well, alright." He went to Songbird, and watched him claw letters in the sand. The message read _I'm sorry_. "Aw, jeez... I appreciate it, but we don't have time for apologies. We gotta keep going, Songbird."

Songbird shook his head. He then looked at Zachary.

"What?" Zachary demanded. Songbird's shoulders drooped further. He beckoned Zachary and began clawing more letters in the sand. Songbird wrote out _I am_ but stopped. Songbird fell to his knees.

"You alright?" Zachary asked. Songbird looked at him, then seemed to slowly exhale. The white rays from its eyes beamed onto the ground, and a ghostly shape appeared.

Booker stepped back, "If any more dead rise again..."

The ghostly shape turned, facing Zachary.

"It's me. Elizabeth."

Silence, and then a gust of wind.

Zachary inhaled slowly, then looked relieved. He embraced the ghostly Elizabeth tightly, resting his head on hers. His eyelids failed to hold back a few teardrops.

"I thought I lost you..."

"Shhh... I'm here. I knew we'd meet again."

Pinkerton Elizabeth's shoulders and chin dropped. She let the two have their time together, but there was quite a punch to her gut. She never realized how much she craved affection.

"Wait, you're...another me?" blue Elizabeth asked, walking to her ghostly counterpart. Zachary and Elizabeth let go of each other. "I thought you were my mother."

"I...don't know what happened. I drowned. Then, I came back, yet I was gone. I..."

"You merged with Songbird," Spirry said. "Not even death could sever the bond he had with you. Consider it a constance. Not that it matters, it's all over."

"Oh no it's not," ghostly Elizabeth assured, hand on her hip and other slightly outstretched. "There is one more way. I made sure of that."

Spirry tilted his head. "How?"

"I won't tell you."

"Hmmm... Clever girl." Spirry seemed amused.

"So what's our next step?" a marine asked.

"We get going. That's all I will say. Spirry cannot know what I am up to." Ghostly Elizabeth beamed back into Songbird.

"Then let's go. We must destroy Black Sun for you to regain your powers," Spirry said.

"No time to talk, eh?" the Zealot asked.

"C'mon, sweetie." Old Elizabeth plucked Cindy off the ground and carried her.

"Huh. Seems like we just keep going forwards no matter what," Booker remarked.

"Best thing to do," Zachary commented.

"As long as I get to burn something..." the Fireman growled.

"Hey! Videre! Wait up!" Booker called. Off everyone went.

* * *

It was a strange feeling, to walk amidst Rapture without the ocean. Most windows were shattered long ag, but about half the advertisements were still visible, but no electricity worked, unsurprisingly. At least all the Enaedonai was gone.

Everyone was quite quiet, Songbird leading the way. Sometimes, the marines or Vox would quietly chat about this and that, or what the would do if they would fail. The Bookers were always aware and looking around, ladies keeping close.

The Big Sisters' visors turned yellow.

"Something's coming," Eleanor warned.

Various growls echoed from above, followed by gunfire from the skyscrapers. Those with guns fired back, the marines, Vox and Bookers already shooting several enemies out windows, who fell to their deaths.

Songbird wailed and jumped, taking flight and soaring into a building, smashing through glass and beams.

Spirry also took flight, diving through a window to fight the foes, whoever they could be. The fleshy monsters and Videre remained defensive, while the Elizabeths summoned cover for everyone.

The Big Sisters teleported up to one building to confront the enemy, whatever they happened to be. To Eleanor's surprise, they consisted of strange biomechanical beings. The beings had skinless bodies, similarly to fleshy monsters, but were not as large, and they still had their eyes. They wore metal body armour, military helmet, and wielded guns similar to those of the two World Wars. Their mechanical parts were primitive, and seemed to simply be bolted onto their bodies. They growled and fired, the Big Sisters bombarded them with flames. The beings daned from pain then charged, growling like animals, but the Big Sisters blasted them out windows with telekinesis.

More growls echoed, and more of such biomechanical soldiers came, firing wildly. As bullets ricocheted, the Big Sisters hurled fireballs and charged, ramming their needles through faces and hearts, easily dispatching the reckless, crazy, skinless soldiers.

Eleanor's red visor beamed upon a dead soldier's body armour, revealing a symbol, "It's the same symbol as those soldiers in the jungly world... Black Sun. Huh."

Outside, Songbird sounded like he (though he was also a vessel for Elizabeth) performed quite a lot of havoc, rearranging architecture for sure!

The Big Sisters teleported to everyone else. The Elizabeths had summoned Gun Automatons, picking off various Black Sun soldiers off the skyscrapers. More growls echoed down the spaces between the skyscrapers. Sands shifted here and there, and Black Sun soldiers crawled out, sand pouring out their mouths.

"I thought we were done with these guys!" Booker complained, casting Shock Jockey at a score of Black Sun soldiers, then taking their heads off with his Hand Cannon. Returning fire was absorbed by his shields, and when the enemy came too close, he would split them open with his new Vigor, or break their necks with his Sky-Hook.

Booker, Zachary, the Zealot, and the Fireman unleashed their Vigors at will, whilst everyone else used their guns, Big Sisters hurling fireballs. Videre and his fleshy monsters were shot many ties, but they charged, tackling into foes and rolling about, biting and clawing.

Spirry slammed upon a few soldiers, crushing them against the sand. While he was shot, he looked around.

"If there is another way, we need to move! Black Sun numbers in the thousands! Get to the pyramid!"

"You heard the fairy, let's get going!" Daisy shouted, and so everyone moved forth, running through the drained Rapture and shooting as more and more foes emerged from the sand or charged down the sandy streets.

Songbird (or Elizabeth?) constantly flew to and fro, slamming upon Black Sun and breaking them, then swinging his arms and legs to claw them apart. Songbird extended a hand, summoning several Mosquitoes that joined the fight.

"Use us as cover!" Videre shouted, he and his fleshy monsters serving as moving shields for those with less combat experience. The Fireman, Vox Beast, Booker and Zachary also served as moving shields; bullets peppered the ground everywhere they went, Tenenbaum covering her head as she ran.

The Elizabeths constantly summoned new cover as they went. The Pinkerton shot one Black Sun soldier in-between the eyes, and he flopped over lifelessly. Old Elizabeth summoned a Motorized Patriot to intercept a charging cluster of Black Sun.

"Thou shall become as lifeless as this world!" the Patriot threatened, Crank Gun ripping, gunning down a score of Black Sun.

Booker and Zachary's shields lit up frequently, but they remained intact. Up ahead, Spirry sprinted forth, kicking an emerging Back Sun soldier in the head, then stomping down on the heads of others trying to crawl out the sand.

"Dammit! There's just no end to these guy!" Booker shouted; trailing after them was a mob of perhaps a hundred Black Sun soldier! Songbird dove upon them, and kept them busy, his Mosquitoes flying overhead and raining bullets.

"Keep going! I can see the pyramid ahead!" Eleanor shouted, she and her Sister utilizing their Plasmids like crazy.

While bullets bounced off the armours of the Fireman and Beast, a few marines were shot, and they fell. Pinkerton Elizabeth, Porter, the Zealot and Sofia also hit the ground.

"SOFIA!" Zachary screamed, turning around and running to her. Eleanor teleported over Mother and threw fiery death at the incoming horde. Mother had been shot in the ribs.

Porter rolled onto his back but kept firing his shotgun. Adrenaline was pumping so hard he barely felt any pain. The Zealot also continued unleashing crows despite being shot.

Everyone else stopped running, turning around to help those who were injured despite the shower of bullets. Songbird jumped over the wounded, and those protecting the wounded, covering them with his wings to shield them. Old Elizabeth hugged the frightened Cindy tightly and knelt.

The Big Sisters, Bookers, and Fireman threw their fiery powers at the enemies, and then Songbird erupted with a shockwave. In the vicinity, about a dozen Black Sun soldiers stood, eyes glowing white, bodies black, and having white auras; they turned on their own. Booker and Zachary threw Possession traps into the cluster of soldier, creating more chaos. Murderous Crows swooped in and pecked out many eyes.

"Zachary, here!" Blue Elizabeth threw him a bottle of EVE.

"Thanks!"

The fight raged on, everyone using everything they had. The Elizabeths summoned more cover to create a beachhead, then summoned Motorized Patriots. Whenever Songbird's Siren-affected undead were killed, he summoned more. Spirry took to the air, diving into nearby skyscrapers to hurl Black Sun soldiers out to their deaths.

Down the sandy aisle, a large Tear opened, and a few armoured vehicle drove out, machine gun turrets ripping. The Motorized Patriots stood in a line and exchanging heavy fire. The armoured vehicles' engines burst open but they kept driving.

Songbird tackled into the vehicles, breaking them all. Then, several tanks rolled out the huge Tear, resembling Mark V tanks but fitted with oversized biological parts, as if a massive headless animal had tank armour, tracks and a turret assembled into it. The biomechanical tanks firing heavy shells at the Buzzard. Chunks of him broke off, but Songbord sprinted to vehicles anyways, overturning them one by one, covered with sparks and ricocheting bullets. More and more soldiers ran out the Tear, and more and more were ripped open by Songbird.

The Elizabeths worked as fast as they could to help the injured, but things weren't looking good. To make things worse, a mighty howl reverberated throughout Rapture. The black entity was flying to the scene.

"Aww, shhhit!" Booker cursed. His shields rearranged into a lance, which he drove clean through two Black Sun soldiers who charged foolishly, and they burst open when Booker's shields expanded within them, their blood and bolts flying out.

Booker scanned the area. In all directions, Black Sun soldier charged, some even carelessly shooting into their own. Elsewhere, another Tear opened, and a few more biomechanical tanks emerged, sometimes running over their own guys.

"These Black Sun soldiers are completely out of their minds, much crazier than those fleshy monsters!" Eleanor exclaimed, igniting several but they kept firing haphazardly, then charged while swinging their guns like clubs. Eleanor rammed her needle through one, lifted him up, then blasted him with psychokinesis, hurling him into another soldier. She then bombarded the tanks with fireballs, and they soon engulfed, but continued driving and shooting at Songbird.

Song bird flew over the incoming shells, landing atop two tanks and breaking their turrets. He overturned them one by one, then raised the dead to fight their own.

Nearby, Videre's Tear summoned several mechanical lengths which zigzagging amongst a score of Black Sun soldiers, ripping their legs open. His fleshy monsters and Spirry (from the air) dove into the horde, throwing them about with raw power and making a mess of them.

"I think you need more men!" the demon happily yelled despite being covered with bullet holes. He bit over a soldier's head then pushed the shoulders down, ripping the head off. He then went on all fours and crawled amongst the soldiers while clawing their legs open, creating piles of maimed soldier, he and others trampling them. Spirry also kicked or pawed sand into their eyes.

Up above, the black entity neared the battle. Songbird wailed, then jumped, flying towards the black entity. They met mid-air, Songbird withstanding fiery and freezing Plasmids cast out the entity's mouth, then the two smashing into each other. Without arms after the elbows, the black entity could do little. Songbird grabbed his foe then flew into a skyscraper, smashing the black entity into the concrete. He then grabbed the beast by the throat and jaw, trying to crack both. They rolled about madly and fell out the skyscraper; Songbird positioned his foe upside down and slammed him headfirst into the ground, stunning him. A few stomps to the head and neck would keep it down.

Songbird trudged down the street, trampling many Black Sun soldiers. He then opened a Tear horizontally, and when it closed, two dozen Black Sun soldiers were cut in half. The Buzzard spun around; everyone was about to be overwhelmed, surrounded by piles of dead soldiers, many more climbing or crawling over the droves of dead and dying.

Songbird screamed, his aura erupting violently, hurling all the soldiers around him through the air. A few dozen soldiers were raised from the dead, surrounding Booker and the others. The raised dead stood tall atop the droves of the fallen and fired at the horde, keeping them at bay for now. The Elizabeths summoned new Motorized Patriots, who fired point-blank while clubbing their Crank Guns. By this time, the Mosquitoes were either shot down or phased out of reality.

"There! I got it!" blue Elizabeth exclaimed, opening a Tear. "This way!"

Zachary picked up Sofia bridal style and went into the Tear. One by one, the others made their way in, while the Beast, Fireman, Big Sisters, Songbird, Motorized Patriots, and undead allies kept the foes busy. Once all the wounded were taken through the Tear, the others entered, but the fleshy monsters, Spirry, and Videre were nowhere in sight.

Songbird faced the Tear and waved an arm. More biomechanical tanks emerged from other Tears. Songbird took flight.

Elizabeth's Tear closed, shearing a Black Sun soldier down the middle as he tried to enter the Tear. The Tear seemed to have taken everyone into a building somewhere.

Knees and feet burning from pain, old Elizabeth gasped and fell, nearly dropping Cindy, who was crying.

"Ma'am, let me help you! Come here, child." Tenenbaum took Cindy from old Elizabeth.

"Sofia? Sofia... Oh, God, please don't die..." Zachary lied Sofia down, who coughed blood.

"Zachary... You know you were everything I wanted in a man," she stated. Zachary's eyes and heart tightened. He dropped his revolver and grabbed her hand, lowering his head to hers. "Ask yourself, would I ever want anyone more...than one who arose from his genes?"

"You're not gonna die on me, Sofia."

"Hold on, miss," Pinkerton Elizabeth got her medical skills going. She withdrew a syringe full of raw ADAM, but Sofia pushed it aside.

"No...I am too good for that," Sofia complained weakly, but Elizabeth rammed the needle in anyways.

"Miss...you're bleeding," Sofia said. The Pinkerton looked down on herself, blood dripping from her shirt.

"Aw, shit." She didn't even feel the bullets. She sat down. Sofia pulled the syringe out of her shoulder and tossed it to Elizabeth. She caught it and pushed the remaining ADAM into herself.

The Elizabeths summoned supplies and ammo for everyone. The marines, Elizabeths, and Eleanor did what they could to help the wounded, but it was obvious that some would be unable to go on.

"See anything?" Booker asked as a few marines and Daisy scouted the area.

"No Charlies, yet," a marine replied.

"I think this place is safe from dem freaks." Daisy said.

"I think so, too. This is...Fontaine's warehouse, I think. Chances are, nobody's going to find an easy way in," the Pinkerton said weakly.

"Good. I've just had it with all a' dis..." Daisy sat down clumsily. The Beast sat next to her.

"We've come a long way from rebellin' against Comstock, huh?" he asked, she chuckled.

"Damn right. Who would've thought we'd end up traversing worlds, fighting monsters, and survivin' the end of th' world? We better end up saving it."

Porter sat up with a groan, blue Elizabeth finished bandaging his wounds.

"You know...I'm surprised we're not emotionally unstable. As crazy as this sounds...don't you ever feel like you're being...directed, controlled...by something?"

"All the time," Zachary remarked.

"Must be something to do with constance and variables," old Elizabeth suggested.

"Speaking of which, Eleanor... When I was dreaming, I was told your medallions have something to do with the Cipher. Couldn't get much out of it, though," Booker said. "I lied to Spirry that you knew about it."

"Hm. Benny was after the medallions as well, said it had something to do with wish fulfillment."

"Your wish fulfilling medallions are probably why we lasted this long," old Elizabeth commented. "No way anyone could get this far otherwise. Just look at everything we've survived."

"Wait," blue Elizabeth said, thinking to herself. "Booker, when you rescued me from the machines of that other world... Spirry's voice said something about a Cipher. He expected me to be another Elizabeth, expected the Cipher to be destroyed by now."

"I think he said something like that in my dream, too," Booker said. "He expected the Cipher to be destroyed, especially considering Eleanor. That's what he believes."

"Then the Cipher has to be the key to all this. What else did he say?" Eleanor asked.

"Said something about laws of physics merging with ADAM, creates a canvas, something to do with genes and reality or something."

"A canvas of genetic modification, that's ADAM," Tenenbaum said. "But merged with the laws of physics? How is that possible?"

"The Thinker told me that the Luminescent Biomass was biochemical and quantum mechanical. This must be the canvas he's talking about. Benny said something about all of it being a game..." Eleanor paused, in deep thought.

"Canvas, game, multiple realities, physics merging with ADAM... I think this is how you play God," Pinkerton Elizabeth said.

"Or maybe that is God?" blue Elizabeth spoke softly.

"There ain't no god," Booker assured. "And Eleanor, one more thing... We can't trust Spirry. He will not stick to helpin' us." Eleanor nodded.

"Then we better beat him to our goal," Zachary said. "And hope no one plays God any worse..." He checked on Sofia. "Sofia, please... No more secrets. You know something about Spirry we don't. Please, you gotta tell us."

"He asked you if you'd keep your word, Mother," Eleanor butted in.

Sofia kept silent. Zachary shook her a bit.

"Sofia, please..."

"I dreamt of him once," Sofia finally admitted, then she looked at Eleanor. "He wants me to...to...to bring..."

"Bring what?" Eleanor asked. Mother scowled and looked away.

"Bring back... The man who took you away from me."

Eleanor straightened her back.

 _Bring back Father..._

Eleanor took her helmet off and ran to Mother, and knelt before her.

"Mother! You _must_!"

Mother clenched her teeth. Eleanor grabbed her hands and gently squeezed them.

"Mother! Please! _Please!_ I'll do and be anything you want! I promise!"

Sofia didn't buy it. Eleanor's one eye and eye socket face leaked with tears.

"Mother! You made me who I am as much as Father! I've grown up! I'm growing up! I need you to grow up! I need him to grow up..." Eleanor's and Zachary's heads dropped.

"Sofia...she's crying. Can you really look at your daughter in the eye and say no?" Zachary whispered gently. Sofia stared into Eleanor's puppy dog eyes streaming tears.

" _You_...are _not_ my daughter."

Eleanor slowly wiped away some tears.

"But I want to be."

Sofia sighed. "In the dream, I saw a mirror, inside a creature's lair. It takes aspects of our world, such as what is close to us, or our deepest desires. Then, it merges these aspects with...doors. Or Tears, as the little ladies call them. You left a door open for me, but...you always destroyed the mirror." She looked at her daughter with emptiness. "My word was to prevent the mirror's destruction."

Eleanor did not know what to say, but noticed the Pinkerton's face drop.

" _Eleanor's Darkness..._ "

"And what is this darkness of mine?"

Sofia glared at Eleanor. "What you _really_ are..." she nearly snarled, pointing at Eleanor. "What I always knew you were... What I always wanted to erase."

Eleanor frowned, but said nothing.

"A... _monster_!"

Mother's words hurt Eleanor. _I am not a monster._ Mother read Eleanor's face, but just looked away angrily.

"I know what you really think about yourself, Eleanor. Don't lie to yourself. If you do not believe me, you will believe the mirror."

"You know nothing about me, Mother." _This mirror...will bring back Father..._

"Then I have no time to waste." Eleanor put het helmet back on.

"Eleanor, wait... You're going?" Zachary asked.

"Half of us are injured, lass," a marine said.

"I know. Stay here and protect Mother and the others. I'm going on alone."

"Alone? How ya think you gonna last out there by yourself?" Daisy asked.

Eleanor paused.

"I'm a monster." _Only a monster can survive monsters..._

"Eleanor, look...we gotta sit tight until we're ready to get going. The Back Sun troops are gonna settle down sooner or later, then we'll head out."

 _I know what I have to do._

"Eleanor, listen..."

"I hope to see you again very soon, Mr. DeWitt."

Eleanor teleported.

* * *

Ms. Lamb reappeared outside. She overheard gunfire and growls, where Songbird and Spirry continued causing great havoc amongst Black Sun.

"I have no time to waste..." She sprinted off. Soon, she saw the black metal pyramid, exactly in the spot when Rapture had water. Up ahead, she noticed the sands shifting, as if many great snakes moved underneath.

Multiple mechanical lengths erupted from the ground, tips fitted the drills screeching to life. Eleanor jumped past them, and teleported whenever too many lunged at her. She pushed them back with psychokinetic blasts, and her sprinting continued.

Bullets whizzed past her. She didn't care. Her sole objective was to reach that pyramid. More mechanical lengths emerged, coiling and then lunging like snakes; Eleanor evaded them all with a mix of acrobatics, leaps and teleports. Once close enough, he teleported again...

Inside the pyramid was cold and dark, Eleanor's yellow visor the only source of light. The hallway was quite spacious, leading into a chamber. Eleanor ran forth, footfall echoing heavily. Soon, she felt static and vibrations. At the end of the chamber, she saw...

"A Lutece machine?"

The device was quite huge, covering the entirety of the back wall and rising to the ceiling. However, this device was quite different. Instead of cables or wires, it had immense veins and arteries. Instead of computers, it was huge brains, hearts, lungs, and eyeballs. The brains produced constant electricity, whereas the eyeballs here and there glowed yellow.

"But I thought there was only one world left? Hm. Spirry said something about merging. We must be dealing with multiple worlds merged into one..."

Eleanor investigated further. She knelt, seeing that the Lutece machine did not have a base, but seemed to go farther down past the floor. She could hear clinking and rattling softly echo from below.

"Of course..." Eleanor teleported, and reappeared in the lower level of the pyramid. To her surprise, she was surrounded by suspended machinery, similar to the skyborne machines, but much smaller and decorated with florescent lights.

The machines sparked and zapped, but most swayed on their own accord, rattling and clinking against one another. Amidst flickering lights, sparks and zaps, Eleanor saw ribs, spines, skulls, pelvises, organs, flaps of skin, strips of flesh, and other body parts decorated the machinery.

"Well, that's...uncomfortable." Eleanor pushed the machinery of macabre away and walked through them. "But it will take more than that to stop me." She looked around. The Lutece machine's underside consisted of more biomechanical parts trailing off in multiple directions, reminding her of tree roots, becoming narrower and more widespread farther off.

As Eleanor's boots thudded against the metal flooring, she noticed that the machinery seemed to be following her. She looked up, yellow light illuminating a network of mechanical things, but above them were pools of large Shadow Tears that moved around on their own, being the source of machinery that followed Eleanor.

She teleported away, reappearing in an inactive area. She walked through the defunct machines, which swayed and clicked behind her. Eleanor followed the network of biomechanical parts, sometimes getting confused, but she knew she'd figure it out.

"I've got to find the source of the Lutece machine's power... This underground has to be the caverns where the Luminescent Biomass once was."

Eleanor heard something extremely noisy and loud. She turned, and saw a giant mechanical hand, suspended from above, walking with its fingers after her.

"Oh, not you again..." Eleanor cast Electrobolt at the mechanical arm, electrocuting it. She then ran off, hearing the hand bulldoze its way through the mechanical lengths everywhere. Up ahead, another mechanical arm appeared, slithering, palm upwards, red lens in the palm beaming red, Eleanor's red visor beaming back.

After throwing fireballs at the slithering arm, it reared and slammed its palm down. Eleanor teleported past it and continued running.

 _I can't waste my time fighting those things._

She teleported a few more times, and lost them. She noticed a ledge and hopped off. Her boots landed with a wet crunch. She looked down, yellow visor illuminating ground consisting of jampacked, deformed, stretched, skinless faces that sometimes twitched or breathed.

"Uhh...excuse me..." No matter what she did, her boots always made at least one individual uncomfortable!

She felt rumbling, and echoes of crashing. It came from above, causing al the suspended machinery to shake.

"Hm. Songbird must be trying to break into the pyramid. Good. Now, where are the roots of the Lutece machine?"

Like a lighthouse and its spotlight, Eleanor's visor led her to a few biomechanical tubes. She followed them. Up ahead, she saw fumes slowly rising from a drop-off, and constant churning and bubbling echoed heavily. When she reached the drop-off, she beheld a sea of bubbling blood, even having waves that sounded just like the ocean. Some biomechanical tubes went into the bubbling blood.

"Hm... It must boil from geological activity. Well, not even a Big Sister suit can handle boiling temperatures. I'll have to keep looking elsewhere. Wait..." She teleported high above. When she reappeared, she grabbed onto the suspended machinery, and began swinging from one to the next. With a mix of swings and teleports, she crossed a considerable distance.

She heard something rise from the bubbling blood. Swimming along was the fleshy serpent, eyes locked on Eleanor, who threw fireballs at him while she swung. Quite wet, the serpent withstood the flames better than usual. He jumped out of the water, snapping his aws, but Eleanor teleported; the beast splashed back in the blood. Once she reappeared, the snake swam after her, and she cast Electrobolt, which had great effect in the blood. Zaps illuminated a vast area, and the serpent shook while hissing.

Eleanor teleported inside the serpent's mouth, driving her needle upwards under its mouth. She then threw a fireball down its throat, and teleported back up to the machinery while the serpent writhed in the blood.

"Come after me if you want more pain!" Eleanor mocked. The snake flicked his head and dove. He did not return. "That's right, you stay down."

Eventually, Eleanor saw the silhouette of an island. The island was surrounded by immense vents pumping steam. She swung off the last mechanical length she needed, and landed on the island, boots plopping. She paused, sliding her hands up grooves, which were fitted with biomechanical tubes like the ones she followed. The island's surface was rather translucent, revealing thick, dark redness underneath, rather slushy in texture. Eleanor slowly looked up. At the centre of the island was a colossal umbilical cord, which loosely was connected to the biomechanical ceiling. Eleanor looked down again, trying to figure out this odd island.

"It's...a placenta?" She scanned the area. The vents were actually esophaguses breathing steam. The island was perhaps as vast as an airport, quite a big placenta for sure. "Gross."

Eleanor went to the centre of the island. The base of the umbilical cord appeared to contain the energies of a Vita-Chamber. Something was inside, standing yet leaning to the side. Asleep?

"Hm, if the mechanical structure is its baby..."

Whatever was inside the umbilical cord straightened, and looked back at Eleanor. She felt tuning and static erupt in her brains. She grabbed her helmet and screamed, her own blood gushing against the inside of her visor. She fell over and convulsed into a fetal position...

* * *

Meanwhile, Booker and the others had been exploring. The wounded were helped to walk, and everyone gradually made their way through the ruinous underground of the drained Rapture. By sheer chance, or fate, they stumbled upon Hephaestus. The glass tunnels were still intact, granting them safe access through the sea of red sand and magma chambers.

"Ya sure we gotta go this way?" the Beast asked.

"Yes, I can feel it. This reminds me of when I used to see behind all the doors. I can somewhat remember this place," Pinkerton Elizabeth replied.

"How much farther?" Zachary asked, helping Sofia walk.

"A little more, we're almost there," the Pinkerton assured.

Eventually, they reached a destroyed section. A large gradual depression in the flooring revealed the underground. Down everyone went, entering dark caves full of suspended machines spotted with fluorescent bulbs, msot of which flickered.

"Oh no...not this place again... Damn." Pinkerton Elizabeth's shoulders dropped.

"You've been here before?" Booker asked, he, Zachary, the Fireman, and Big Sister summoning passive forms of their fiery powers to create more light.

"Yes. When I got pulled into the Tear back in New York, I came here. This was where I saw Spirry. Or one of his versions. Well, end of the line..."

As the group travelled, they gradually saw what appeared to be biomechanical individuals, similar to Black Sun soldiers, but absent of military gear. They were set in various acrobatic and dance poses.

"Not quite what I'd consider unconscious art..." Sofia reared quietly.

"Looks like someone couldn't stop killing in the name of art..." the Pinkerton commented, looking at Zachary.

"I don't think we have to worry about looking foolish this time."

"I certainly hope so. No bunny mask at least."

"I hated that thing."

The fluorescent bulbs stopped flickering. Power whirred throughout the area, and the lighting increased. An intercom wheezed to life.

"Ahhh... Yessss, yessss, yyyyehhhsss... She came back. I knew you would, my New Songbird. I knewww you would..." His scherzo started playing. "The bird always flies back to her cage. Oh yes, she does..." Echoing laughter sounded.

"Who the fuck was that?" a marine asked.

"I'm SANDER _FUCKING_ COHEN!" The scherzo cracked with tuning, and then the song changed. It was Elizabeth singing You Belong to Me. The Pinkerton shyly smiled, and blushed a little.

"I've always had such a pretty voice, hunh?" blue Elizabeth commented with a little smile.

Booker and Zachary calmed down quite a bit, as did all the other fighter-types. Any semblance of humanity, even in a simple song, rejuvenates even a suffering soul.

"No... Nnnoo... NO! Why do you embarrass me before the eternal spirit of art!?" The suspended machinery down the caves zapped heavily. "The rabbit needs...a stick!"

As everyone went on, the poses of the biomechanoids become more and more disfigured. They posed acutely, to an extent that joints and bones had surely broken.

"Sander, for God's sake!" a gurgly voice called, followed by electrocution.

"Zachary, let go. I think I can walk on my own," Sofia said, Zachary let her go.

"You alright?" he asked, she nodded.

Booker et al reached an opening in the caverns. A section was illuminated with yellow lighting, revealing several biomechanoids who, apparently, were painting with their own organs. Above them writhed mechanical lengths, some of which had stabbed into one of the biomechanoids and electrocuted him.

The painters seemed to be painting bunny ears on their stone canvases, but Cohen himself was nowhere in sight.

"Wow! Cool!" Cindy exclaimed. Tenenbaum covered the child's face, unable to look at such gruesome sights.

"My eternal spirit, will never be shamed!" The mechanical lengths shocked all the biomechanoids, who all screamed with gargly voices until they fell over. The machinery then realigned them into acute poses, joints and bones breaking, then placed them upright and inserted steel wiring in their bodies to hold them in place.

"And that's why artists are worse than underworld cult leaders..," Zachary mumbled. They would have walked across the chamber, but the mechanical lengths shot down in front of them barring the way. Everyone got ready.

"There's just...no room in any world for me..." Sander whined into his intercom. "I cannot have failure in my muse...but I can begin again. Ah! Yes. They do not die easily. I am the painter, and they are my paint brushes..." The wiring reconfigured, the machinery their control bar, Sander the puppetmaster. They continued painting with their internal organs, albeit very poorly.

"I think I'm going to throw up..." blue Elizabeth warned.

"But wait! Ah, yes, very few can handle my art. It is the artist's job to stun. Don't worry, you may reward yourself with one of my simpler works, little bunny. But first, you must become my true Disciples!" Most of the posed biomechanoids began twitching, but appeared to be rather stuck. "OOOHHHH! Llloook! See how they are...trapped... Prit, prat, prit, prat...like the artist inside who wants to be free... A bird in the cage..."

"And what about them?" Booker asked.

"SET ME FREE! SET MMMEEE FFFRRRREEEEE! FFREEE ME from my eternal torment..."

"The hell is he tryin' to say?" Daisy asked.

"Smile, smile! Wait, what was that? You don't like how they look? Fucking doubters... Fuck you all! Fuck you doubters!" Cohen's outburst caused the biomechanoids to shake, and one by one, they began moving, albeit extremely awkwardly, like puppets. Everyone with guns got ready to shoot.

"Cohen! We mean no harm! Just let us pass!" Zachary shouted. At that, the biomechanoids stopped.

"Ahh...yes, the Last Dance...I remember that. We artists remember more than most. Hmm...the real biscuit came back for a reason... Yes, you are here for... _Him..._ Yes, I will send you to _Him_. Directly. All I ask is..."

"Another dance?" Zachary nonchalantly asked, Pinkerton Elizabeth almost rolling her eyes.

"NNOO! I'd rather you _not_ embarrass me in front of my muse again... But, pain and beauty... Show me pain and beauty... Show me yourselves!"

The biomechanoids shuffled out of the way, torn bellies spilling out their guts.

"Uhh...aright..." Zachary and the Pinkerton wondered where to get started, everyone else unsure of what to do.

"A tyrant, who clearly did not surpass his genes..." Sofia grumbled.

The Fireman approached one of the stone canvases.

"Be careful, you tinman! That's art you behold!" Sander warned.

"Ugh...does he want us to paint with guts?" Pinkerton Elizabeth complained, grimacing at the idea.

"If it's the only way for us to get past..." Zachary said.

Sander's scherzo played again.

"Huh? What? You wanted beauty and pain. Fire is beautiful and painful!" the Fireman bellowed, then smacked his gauntlets together, creating embers.

"No...no! No! No!"

"Yes, yes, yes! Yes!"

"NNOO!"

"YYESS!"

"You stupid sow! How DARE you-"

The Fireman started throwing fireballs at the biomechanoids, setting them all on fire, everyone else jumping out of the way.

"Hey! Watch it!" the Zealot yelled. "These robes are flammable!" Curiously enough, the Zealot and Sander Cohen had the same voice.

"Now _that's_ art!" the Fireman assured.

The music changed to Tchaikovsky. A puff of smoke appeared in the centre of the chamber, and Sander Cohen stepped out. He still wore his old suit from Rapture, but he was missing all his skin, and small mechanical tubes were merged along his veins and joints. Despite being skinless, he still applied makeup on the exposed flesh. He slowly walked around, examining the burning biomechanoids. He placed his dark gilded bunny mask on. The mechanical lengths above flickered random colours, creating a decent show.

"This...really is beautiful. The flames dance with my muse, perfectly... The smoke escapes their imprisonment... The heat is the radiance on my spirit..." Sander threw his mask off and spread his arms. "This! Is the new masterpiece! It also creates itself, just like the artist!"

"You done, yet?" Zachary asked.

Sander took a big, sharp inhale and spun on his heels.

"You will find the path by follow the flickering white lights. My contraptions will also transport you when necessary. Oh, and tell Spirry I said 'Hello!' Now, go. Go! Flit-flit-flit!" The machinery barring the way unravelled.

* * *

Eleanor groaned as she sat up, shaking her helmeted head. She felt horrible, but managed to stay conscious. The Vita-Chamber whirred with energy, but there was no one inside.

"Aw...my head... I better not be going back into the condition I think I am..."

"Well, it's worse than that, my dear. Just look who you have for company," a gurgly voice spoke.

Eleanor turned her head, and saw someone standing nearby, his arms crossed. He was nine feet tall, musclebound but slim-waisted, and his skinless flesh had a milky texture. He did not have eyes, his eye sockets instead fitted with yellow lenses. His face was serpentine, without a nose, but had nostrils. His mouth was too small to cover his fangs or teeth, and his mouth constantly leaked blood. All his veins bulged and were blue.

He wore a sleeveless black leather duster, and black leather pant with a series of hooks set into his flesh. Instead of tendons, he had wire rope. A glass shield covered hs belly, bolted into his ribs and pelvis. All his internal organs had the color and texture of sea slugs, and writhed constantly. Even a uterus was visibly glowing inside his belly.

Eleanor struggled to stand up quickly, but she managed to get on her feet.

"You!? Huh. I know what you are."

"Do you, now?"

"Yes." Eleanor jumped and headbutted him in the chin, helmet cracking his jaw; he staggered. He retaliated by unleashing an Electrobolt, but Eleanor ducked beforehand and rammed her needle into his heart, sucking its fluids out. He groaned, and pushed her off, needle ripping out and squirting Luminescent Biomass.

He cast volumes of flames, Eleanor jumping back to evade them. She teleported behind him and drove her needle through the back of his neck, then slammed a fireball into his head with her free hand.

He reared, bashing his shoulders into Eleanor, staggering her, then he spun around and push-kicked her in the chest and she fell over. Screeching, he dove upon her, but she teleported; he hit the uterus. Eleanor reappeared above him, slamming her heels into the back of his neck.

He rolled over while swiping his claws; Eleanor stepped back. She gripped him with her telekinesis and kicked him across the jaw, and then plunged her needle into his head. She sucked out his brains. He grabbed her arm and pulled her down, slamming her against the uterus. He rolled over her, intending to choke her from behind, but she teleported. He kicked his legs and swung back to his feet, head and chest bleeding Luminescent Biomass.

Just as Eleanor reappeared, he erupted with a gravitational blast, which hurled her through the air. While falling, Eleanor threw fireballs, and he cast Old Man Winter at her. Her fireballs struck his Plasmid, causing it to expand into freezing prematurely. The two exchanged a flurry of fiery Plasmids, both gradually staggering away from each other.

"Keep trying! I can do this all day!" Eleanor warned.

Eleanor charged, driving her helmet into his waist while stabbing him in the sternum. He picked Eleanor up and slammed her down, but she just bounced off the uterus. She wrapped her legs around his head and hosited herself upon his shoulders, repeatedly stabbing her needle into his skull.

He unleashed a blast of psychokinesis, which sent Eleanor flying off. He pointed up, and a few mechanical lengths screeched as they flailed at Eleanor. She blasted them back with telekinesis, and safely landed in time to see him charging.

Eleanor empowered herself with telekinesis, causing her to float. She then dove headfirst into the charging biomechanoid, and time seemed to slow down. Her helmet hit his forehead with such force the skull cracked. He groaned. Eleanor floated backwards and dove forth again, driving a heel into his throat, hearing his trachea crack. He grabbed her by the leg and slammed her into the uterus; she bounced against it and he threw her away.

Eleanor performed a handspring upon landing. Her foe blasted a wave of electricity, which shocked her and she cried out. She cast Electrobolt back and it was his turn to scream. She took the advantage and lunged her needle into his heart again, sucking more fluid out of him.

Eleanor felt something hit her in the shoulder; mechanical lengths got caught in her suit and lifted her. She would have been entangled by machinery, but she teleported away. He looked around, but Eleanor was nowhere in sight.

Eleanor's helmet appeared, bobbing in the boiling blood, and she threw fireballs at her foe. He snarled and charged, but then stopped, heels scraping against the brain. Eleanor cast Electrobolt at him then teleported out the blood, which was getting a little too hot for her!

She appeared before him, charging her body with telekinetic power, and then stomped on his knee, snapping it backwards. He fell on one knee with a grunt, then Eleanor drove her needle through his right eye, breaking the lens there. The tip of her needle stuck out the back of his head, and she kneed him in the chin. He sent an uppercut to the sternum, knocking the breath out of her. He bear hugged her, suffocating her. Eleanor wiggled, then teleported behind him, stabbing through his back and sucking out more fluids.

"You fucking little mosquito!" He spun around and smacked Eleanor across the helmet. She recovered from her stagger and kicked him in the groin. "Ooo!" He clutched his groin and convulsed, falling to his knees. He blasted Eleanor away with a telekinetic burst, then snapped his broken knee into proper position.

"Try to make me stop!" Eleanor got up and threw fireballs. Her foe threw Plasmids back, a mix of fire, electricity, and freezing Plasmids. Eleanor harassed her foe, constantly teleporting about and throwing Plasmids, qutie energized from sucking out his Luminescent Biomass. Her constant teleporting allowed her to evade his Plasmids as well as his use of mechanical lengths.

He screamed in rage, erupting with such psychokinetic force Eleanor flew into the bubbling blood. She sank a bit, but her helmet popped out. Behind her, the fleshy serpent swam. Biomechanical Spirry cast a surge of electricity, shocking the blood and Eleanor, and the serpent, giving Eleanor enough time to get out the blood.

He unleashed a directed mass of telekinesis at Eleanor, but she simply teleported past it, reappeared in front of him, and drove her needle into his heart while casting Electrobolt. He growled. Eleanor then used her psychokinesis to grip his heart, trying to rupture it, but the organ was quite powerful. He kicked Eleanor in the sternum and she fell over.

He lifted his chin, and several mechanical lengths shot down from above. Unsurprisingly, Eleanor teleported, keeping her distance and casting fireballs. Her foe charged, a dozen or so mechanical lengths flailing at Eleanor repeatedly. She sprinted away, allowing her opponent to chase her.

While running, she teleported atop him, hugging his head with her thighs and driving her needle down the top of his head, sucking out more brains. He snarled, but Eleanor gripped him with telekinesis and shocked him with an Electrobolt. As several mechanical lengths speared towards her, she fell backwards while keeping her legs locked around his head; the mechanical lengths either missed her or hit him.

Eleanor teleported a short distance away and harassed him with Plasmids, gradually overwhelming him. He charged angrily, and Eleanor suddenly leapt upon him, driving her needle clean through his head. He fell on his back, Eleanor mounted on him, and repeatedly headbutted him in the face while constantly stabbing his chest.

He grabbed Eleanor by the sides and threw her up into the air, then jumped, ramming his shoulder into her belly. She felt her organs and all her air rise painfully. She flopped onto the uterus, regretting her failed teleportation attempt. She fell down, and he unleashed a constant stream of electricity into her. She flailed her limbs.

The machinery up above loudly screeched. Biomechanical Spirry looked up, seeing a spiralling set of machinery descend. Standing within were Booker and the others, except the injured and non-combatants.

"Eleanor!" Booker yelled jumping off the machinery, his shields forming into a big drill. Booker landed atop him, driving his shields into his head. The ensuing eruption split the biomechanoid's skull open, brains, blood and Luminescent Biomass gushing out. He did not die, and he grabbed Booker by the head and threw him down, then stomped into his gut with such force, Booker's shields shattered, and he was quite hurt.

"Booker!" the Elizabeths cried at the same time. The Pinkerton aimed her Ambassador and fired three times, every shot hitting the villain in the head and staggering him. Daisy and the marines joined in the shooting.

The Fireman jumped down and ran forth, drop-kicking biomechanical Spirry amidst the shooting, and they both fell over. Once the machinery touched the uterus, the Vox Beast ran forth, armour resisting friendly fire, and he rammed his shotgun into the biomechanoid's mouth and blew the top half of his head off.

Surprisingly, he did not die, and psychokinetic forced blasted outwards, knocking those near him down. He got up with a growl, and began throwing a mix of electrical, fiery and freezing Plasmids in all directions. The Vox Beast was frozen, the Fireman electrocuted, and everyone else had to run away less be put on fire.

Eleanor ran through the Plasmids and tackled into him. She was atop him, needle ready. Everything shook. Eleanor looked up, seeing the ceiling breaking apart, chunks of metal raining down with skinny, deformed, flayed bodies. Songbird broke through, wailing in rage. He looked quite damaged, but was obviously still functional! He swooped down, Spirry flying after him, the black entity also entering.

Songbird spun around as the black entity dove into him. The two clutched, and fell into the boiling blood with a mighty splash.

The biomechanoid screamed angrily, unleashing another powerful telekinetic blast, hurling Eleanor a dozen feet into the air, and everyone else at least several feet away. Exhausted, he looked up in time to see Spirry tackling into him.

Spirry growled as he pinned his biomechanical counterpart down, trying to dislodge the glass shield. Spirry was hit by a dozen or so mechanical lengths and lifted. The biomechanoid got up angrily, the half head he had left still working, apparently.

He raised his arms and made a guttural scream, and dozens of mechanical lengths flailed, attacking everyone. Eleanor teleported to freedom, but then received a telekinetic blast to the gut and she hit the ground convulsing. Eleanor's Sister charged screaming, hurling fireballs, and jumped on his back, stabbing through his torso. He yelled, then grasped the Big Sister and slammed her back on his knees. She rolled over twitching and wheezing.

"AAGGHH!" he yelled again, unleashing yet another wave of power in all directions, which knocked out Booker, the two Elizabeths, and all but one marine. Zachary and the marine weakly sat up, but their foe electrocuted them and then smashed them with a psychokinetic blast, which also sent the Big Sisters flying off.

A Motorized Patriot was summoned, shooting into the biomechanoid then smashing him with the Crank Gun. The Patriot was grabbed by mechanical lengths and thrown into the blood.

Having injured everyone significantly, his mechanical lengths lunged at everyone, wrapping around them and lifting them.

"Little cunts! I'll boil you all alive for fucking with me like that!" He heard bellowing laughter. He turned around, seeing Spirry stuck, but laughing. Spirry cocked his head.

"Torture us? That's just a favor for me. We are closer than brothers, are we not?" Spirry taunted. His other self huffed. Spirry suddenly broke free, landing atop his other self and driving his claws into him.

Spirry nearly ripped the glass shield out, but he was Electrobolted, and then hurled away with a telekinetic blast.

Eleanor teleported out her mechanical tomb. Just as her foe faced her, she dove her head into his stomach, helmet shattering the glass shield. She stunned him with electricity while getting up, then rammed her arm into his chest, needle piercing his heart. She grabbed the heart with her free hand and tried to rip the damn thing out, but he unleashed a directed volume of power against Eleanor' helmet, shattering the visor and throwing her back.

He staggered, putting a hand under his chest where so much blood and Luminescent Biomass leaked out. He groaned, but managed to summon mechanical lengths to entrap Eleanor again. He then faced Spirry again.

"You are one reason I destroyed so many worlds. I could never find you, or the girl. Once I kill you...I will revert everything to what it once was, without you. But first...so that you don't screw us over... Let's see what you _really_ are..."

Eleanor regained her senses, somewhat. She silently teleported out of her trap, reappearing in an exhausted, kneeling position. She observed the two Spirrys, the fleshy one lowered. Mechanical lengths ending in hooks and blades began peeling Spirry open, ripping his flesh off. He chuckled until he lost his larynx and voice box.

Eleanor limped behind the biomechanoid. He did not notice her. She raised her needle, ready to drive it in for the last time. He spun around and kicked her in the gut. She fell over, clutching her belly with a groan.

"You are quite the annoyance, girl." He flexed his arms, claws protracting, and then there was splashing and wailing. Songbird crawled out the blood, screaming. Many mechanical lengths showered Songbird, but he nevertheless grabbed the biomechanical Spirry, and crushed him, then ripped him apart.

All the mechanical lengths went limp, everyone once trapped by them falling out. Old Elizabeth, Tenenbaum, Cindy, Sofia, and the injured finally came, going down the mechanical things that appeared earlier. They did what they could to help the others. Old Elizabeth summoned supplies to get started.

"Booker? Stay with me..."

Songbird turned around as the black entity writhed out the blood, squirming along the uterus. The monster hissed. Songbird stepped forth and grabbed the entity by the head and jaw, and literally snapped the skull off the jawbone and neck. The skull flipped mid-air and plopped on the uterus. The headless body twitched for a moment, then was finally dead.

Songbird relaxed. He was about to walk on, but then heard something. He knelt over the head, grabbed it in both hands, and cracked it apart as if an egg. Inside was a small girl, curled up in a fetal position, softly whimpering.

Eleanor limped to the child, Songbird raising his hands. Eleanor lifted the child out the black entity's cracked head. The little thing remained in a fetal position unconsciously, but whimpering. She wore a blue dress and had dark hair, and was filthy.

Eleanor carried the child to the others.

"Who's that?" Cindy asked

"I don't know," Eleanor replied. She noticed Songbird's eyes projected the ghostly Elizabeth, who walked over and checked on the child in Eleanor's arms.

"It's Ellie."

"Ellie?" Pinkerton Elizabeth said, surprised, but she had to continue healing Zachary. Eleanor handed the child to Tenenbaum.

"Eleanor," Spirry spoke, everyone conscious looking at him. He pointed at the umbilical cord. "Black Sun will only be destroyed if you sever it from your world. With Apocatastasis and my other self here dead, there is nothing to stop us. I thought we were out of time, but we did it. Destroy the Cipher to end the synthesis I began, or possess it yourself to create a new synchrony."

Booker groaned, struggling to say something, but was in too much pain. Eleanor approached the umbilical cord.

"Inside is the Cipher. Enter it, and your consciousness will connect with the laws of physics. You will see your home, and we will be born again," Spirry explained.

"Mr. Spirry, come with me. If this is our fate, I want you to be with me."

"As you wish, Ms. Lamb."

Eleanor knew what she had to do, and approached the Cipher. She felt her medallions pulsate with power. The ghostly Elizabeth walked in front of her, raising a hand to stop her. Elizabeth slightly leaned into Eleanor.

"Eleanor...are you _sure_...you want to do this?"

"I have to. There is no other way to save our world."

"We can't save this world, Eleanor. We can only merge it with its past. But I can't stop what you want to do..."

"I know what I am doing, Elizabeth. You were once a citizen of Rapture, and I am gradually obtaining all the memories of Rapture. Once I have acquired the essence of Rapture... Everything you know about Tears, I will also know."

Elizabeth's head lowered, and she allowed Eleanor to go, Spirry following her.

"There is nothing else we can do. And a choice is better than none," Spirry commented.

Eleanor stopped before the Cipher. She turned around, looking back at everyone. Her only friends...

"Shall we go, mother?" Spirry asked. Eleanor gave him a weird look. She took a breath and entered the Cipher...

Everything was pink and veiny, as if she entered her own imagination. She smelled roses, and felt comfy. She heard the others mumbling. Zachary was asking about her, while the marines and Vox talked about how crazy the island-uterus looked.

 _Am I dreaming? I feel...beautiful...like I'm sleeping in heaven..._

Everything seemed slow-motion, peaceful, warm, perfect... Eleanor stretched and yawned. She was in bed. She opened her sleepy eyes, and yawned again. Sitting up, she realized she was in her white dress again, in the same bed Father found her in long ago. She looked at Mother's chair, but she was gone. She looked at her pillows, seeing Little Daddy there. She smiled. She even had both eyes again.

Eleanor chuckled. She let her head fall back on the pillows, and relaxed, making herself comfortable. She then remembered about something, and sat up. She turned her head, and saw a pair of big yellow eyes mounted on a fleshy, serpentine face. The two kept eye contact, the snake's tongue sliding in and out.

Without breaking eye contact, Eleanor slowly lifted the covers off herself and sat on her heels.

Silence.

"I forgive you. Do you forgive me?" Eleanor asked. The serpent did nothing. Eleanor took Little Daddy and slowly got out of bed, and walked towards the glass door barefoot. Even with her back turned, the serpent did nothing. She pushed the glass open and stepped through.

Eleanor found herself in a greyscale hallway. Armoured with her white dress, and equipped with Little Daddy, she walked down. She opened one of the doors and looked inside. She saw the monument of Korczak and his children.

Eleanor looked in the next room. She saw a Schwarze Sonne monument, but it was cracked and ruined. She checked the next room, and saw a statue of a bipedal dragon, head tilted diagonally down.

"Spirry, that's you..." In the next room, she saw nothing, but heard ghostly whispers reverberating.

In the next room, Eleanor saw a statue of Songbird. She opened the next door, and inside were ghostly people in suits and bunny masks, dancing casually. She continued looking in the next doors, seeing statues of various authors in them: George Orwell, Ernest Hemingway, Ayn Rand, H.P. Lovecraft, Leonard Wibberley, John Steinbeck, and others.

The next statue she saw was Atlas of GE Building, exactly the one she saw in New York. The next room depicted caped knights with muskets.

"The soldiers from the jungly world..."

Other rooms had statues of the Founding Fathers, Andrew Ryan, the Angel Columbia, Aunt Gracie, and a Big Sister holding up a Little Sister. When she opened the next door, her face brightened up at the statue she saw.

"Father..." He stood like a golden knight, his drill a lance against evil. "Father, wherever you are... You give me hope."

Eleanor continued down the hallway. She gasped, dropping Little Daddy and clutching her abdomen. She cried out and fell on her knees, both hands squeezing her belly.

"Owww! Aghh!" Eleanor fell on her side. Pain intensified in her stomach. She raised her knees and moaned. Tears streamed down her face, and she wept like a little girl. She rolled onto her back. "AAAGGGHHH! Ahh! Wha...what's happening?" She had no answer. She let off a shrilling, hoarse shriek. She curled back into a fetal position. She saw Little Daddy slumped on the floor, as if mourning her. She wept steadily.

 _I...I can't break down! No! Not like this..._ Eleanor crawled through a door, barely able to open it. "Help... Help? Help me..." Eleanor whimpered. She had to do something. Inside, she saw a big mirror, half of it cracked off and on the floor.

"The mirror's broken," Michael's voice spoke, distorted by tuning.

Eleanor heard ghostly whispers all around her, but could not understand. The pain came back. She cried out, then moaned.

"No! Not like this... I...I don't want t-to...die like this..." Memories rushed back. The only memory that burned in her mind was when Mother gave Father a pistol.

 _And fire..._ That gunshot...

"You know, Ms. Lamb, the Hypnotize Plasmid did not only apply to your mother. Despite being so young you yourself could have-"

"Said something..." Eleanor's tears streamed out her face. She sharply inhaled through clenched teeth. "Father...I'm so sorry...I should have..."

Eleanor wept. She wept bitterly and constantly.

"I...I..." _I don't want to live anymore..._

"Will you look in the mirror, Eleanor?" Michael's voice asked.

Eleanor's eyes shot open. She did not know why, but she forced herself to look at her reflection, perhaps as a form of punishment. Her grimace, tears, and sadness showed a completely devastated girl who lost all the will to live.

"Eleanor...what do you see in your reflection?"

It reminded her of a recording she made long ago. Her honest answer hurt to even think about. She tightly closed her eyes, which burned from so much crying.

"I see a freak." _Mother was right. I'm a monster._

Eleanor could not bear to face that answer. She crawled away, back into the hallway, anything to get away from that...monster. The pain intensified again; she could crawl no farther. She faced down the hallway, seeing where she had walked from. At the end, she saw her cozy room, her bed... the place where Mother kept her sedated for so long... The place that felt like home.

 _Home...the place I'm meant to be... Where I just want to die..._

Heavy footfall sounded, accompanied by heavy breathing and leaking sounds. Spirry stood behind Eleanor, clasping his hands behind his back. Eleanor looked up at him, big blue eyes leaking as they gazed at empty, bleeding sockets.

"You have seen your home, Eleanor. Now, we will be born again." Spirry tilted his head. "You were my only friend, you know."

Eleanor gasped and moaned through clenched teeth. The pain in her belly caused her legs to kick. She writhed against the floor. Every breath she made felt like her guts would explode.

"Or perhaps I should say... You were my only mother. I was always with you, Eleanor."

The pain in her stomach intensified. Eleanor rapidly thrashed side to side, and coarsely screamed with everything in her. Her scream echoed. Spirry's beating heart echoed as well, in perfect unison with her own beating heart.

"Or, perhaps I should say... I was always _inside_ of you, mother. In your world, I was so tiny, such a little thing... A fisherman caught me once. I bit him. He took me to Tenenbaum. She studied me. Then I somehow ended up implanted in you. Now do you know why I bonded with you, without your consent?"

Eleanor screamed from pain. She jerked viciously, clawing at her belly, eyes tightly shut, teeth barred. Blood leaked out her mouth, and the skin on her belly began ripping from her fingernails.

"Eleanor, mother... I'm sorry I kept this from you. But there was no other choice. Your purpose was to be a sacrifice, and this is a constance that cannot change. I must eat to grow, and your body will be my vessel. Your memories, your drives, your knowledge, your ADAM...everything that makes you, you...will be the new me. You are perfect, Eleanor, a true Utopian. I would not ask for any other mother."

Eleanor screamed. There was not one breath without suffering. No matter what she did, pain engulfed her. Her guts pushed against the inside of her belly. More blood gushed out her mouth. She was choking in her own blood, gargling in agony.

"Goodbye, mother... And thank you."

Spirry became coated with ice. He broke free and spun around, receiving an Electrobolt which stunned him. Someone telekinetically launched a grenade into Spirry, blasting him over Eleanor. As the smoke settled, Eleanor's blurry vision barely made out the image of a man. And, incredibly... She saw _him_. He had white hair and aged significantly past ten years, but...

 _The man in a turtleneck_ approached Spirry, firing and cocking a shotgun repeatedly as the demon picked himself up. Once the shotgun was out of shells, he tossed it aside and unslung a machine gun. He stepped over Eleanor and emptied the magazine into Spirry. Already heavily damaged from so much punishment, Spirry collapsed, but got up and kept walking.

"You are a brave man, Jack."

He cast Winter Blast, freezing Spirry again. He reloaded his Tommy gun, and once Spirry burst out his icy tomb, Jack emptied another clip into him. Spirry growled, swinging his claws to and fro, ripping Jack's chest open. Jack ducked under Spirry's big arm, then cast Sonic Boom into his chest, hurling the devil back.

Jack stood his ground and reloaded for the third time; Eleanor could only weakly and slowly crawl away from the action. He cast Incinerate at Spirry, then unloaded more bullets into the flaming demon. Spirry charged and leapt at Jack, who ducked while firing upwards into Spirry as the demon went over. Spirry landed on all fours, turned around, and crawled, hissing while his flesh sizzled. Always bleeding, the fiery Plasmid didn't last long, though.

Tommy gun without clips, Jack threw it at Spirry then withdrew a pistol and continued shooting. Spirry tackled into Jack, the two flying back and rolling along the floor, Spirry biting Jack's head and clawing his shoulders and back. Jack yelled from pain, and a Sonic Boom hurled the crazy beast into the ceiling.

"Aw, fuck!" Spirry cursed as he hit the floor.

An Electrobolt stunned Spirry, giving Jack time to use an EVE Hypo. He reloaded his revolver and fired while charging Spirry, stunning him again with another Electrobolt. Jack then grabbed Spirry's forehead. Yellow light glowed from his hand, then beamed out Spirry's eye sockets and mouth. The demon softly exhaled and his arms went limp. Spirry pushed Jack away, then kicked him across the legs; Jack hit the floor with a groan.

Jack crawled backwards while shooting the last chambers of his revolver, then gave Spirry a Winter Blast. Jack got up, reloading his revolver. Spirry was weakened and injured, and struggled to break free from the ice. Jack charged, placing his hand on Spirry's frozen head. The yellow glow returned. The demon erupted from the ice, headbutting Jack with such force he fell over, dropping his gun.

"Don't insult me!"

The genetically enhanced human regained his senses quickly. Spirry leapt at him. Jack powerslammed Spirry into the floor, then cast Electrobolt. Spirry shook on the floor. Jack quickly slammed his hands on Spirry's head, causing him to loosen up and go limp.

"Wha...what?" Spirry weakly asked.

Just as white light began to beam, Spirry punched Jack in the gut. Jack convulsed, hands still glowing. Jack then got up and exchanged blows with the much bigger opponent, fists thudding heavily. Jack heard his knuckles crack repeatedly as he punched Spirry's jaw side to side. Spirry clocked Jack across the head and the human fell over, but Spirry fell on a knee, his jawbone crooked.

Dazed, Jack barely managed to get up and stay on his feet. He felt his belt and withdrew a pipe wrench. Stunning Spirry with an Electrobelt, Jack gripped his pipe wrench with both hands and clobbered Spirry repeatedly, dashing out blood with every hit. Jack swung the wrench so hard that the handle bent. Spirry angled his head to parry the pipe wrench with his horns, causing it to fly out Jack's hand at the next strike.

Jack began punching Spirry in the throat, busting the trachea back. The demon swung his claws. Jack ducked to avoid them, and jumped into Spirry's leg, driving both feet into the knee and hearing a loud crack. Spirry hunched over his broken knee, and Jack kicked him right in the throat, the kicked his other leg in the back of Spirry's head.

Dazing the devil, Jack grabbed Spirry's horns and twisted the head around acutely until hearing it crack. Spirry gored Jack in the chest with his horn, staggering him. Spirry dove into Jack, pinning him to the floor then burying his teeth into Jack's side.

"Aaghh!" He Winter Blasted Spirry, but his frozen teeth were still in him. Jack used another EVE Hypo, then he pushed Spirry off himself, frozen teeth ripping out his body.

Jack grabbed Spirry's head and the yellow lights returned. Spirry managed to free his arms, wrapping them around Jack then picking him up and slamming him headfirst into the floor. Jack felt his neck crack, pain erupting down his spinal cord, but he could take the pain. As Spirry broke free of the ice, Jack Electrobolted him, then headbutted him in the chin repeatedly while swinging hook punches into the jaw. No matter how hard Jack hit Spirry, the devil remained standing. Jack's hands swelled and shook constantly, blood leaking

Spirry hissed, charging Jack. He lifted Jack over his shoulder then rammed him into the wall. Jack slumped down, Spirry kneeing him in the face multiple times, busting his nose, lips and eyebrows open. Spirry reared his arm and swung a mighty punch; Jack rolled sideways, Spirry's hand getting stuck in the wall.

Ripping his arm out the wall, Spirry curled his tail behind Jack's ankles and tripped him. Spirry drove his foot down, but Jack rolled, Spirry's heel breaking into the floor. He promptly received another Electrobolt. It caused him to bend backwards, arms spread apart, and he growled. Jack gripped his second (and last) grenade, and took the pin off. Grasping the grenade with Telekinesis, Jack launched the grenade into Spirry's chest, where it embedded. The demon looked down, and the grenade exploded.

Spirry hit the floor, a hole in his chest. He began twitching wildly, constantly swiping his arms, legs and wings. To further his raid movement, Jack Electrobolted the devil, then turned his attention to Eleanor.

Eleanor cried out in pain, tears streaming down her face. She was clawing into her own stomach so much that her fingernails were full of skin and blood. Her guts ballooned frequently, stretching the skin of her belly. Eleanor banged her head against the floor, lost to agony.

Jack limped to Eleanor, bleeding everywhere. He did not have to be told what to do. He knelt over Eleanor, and gently placed his hand on the Little Sister's forehead. Eleanor softly gasped. Her shoulders and arms relaxed, her mouth opened, and yellow light glowed around her head. White light intensified, blinding Eleanor.

The pain was gone.

Eleanor's eyes needed time to recover, but she looked at the blurry image of Jack above her. He smiled as blood leaked down his face. Eleanor smiled back. She put a hand on her belly and pressed into it.

 _No Sea Slug..._

Eleanor chuckled weakly.

 _No Spirry..._

"Thank you, mister..."

Jack nodded. Spirry growled; the fight was not over. Jack approached Spirry, as injured as he was. Spirry howled, overwhelming the old man within a couple seconds with a flurry of punches. Jack hit the floor with a groan.

Eleanor gasped. She wanted to teleport, but only a little burst of telekinesis came. She wanted to throw fireballs, but only tiny flames emerged. Eleanor gasped again.

"Without the Sea Slug..." She could only crawl away in pain. Spirry walked after her, broken leg cracking more until a bone stuck out.

One of the doors was kicked open from inside. Eleanor and Spirry looked to the side; Booker stepped out, Hand Cannons in either side.

"Did you forget about us?"

Other doors were kicked open. Zachary, Daisy, Pinkerton Elizabeth, the Big Sister, the Vox Beast, Fireman, and two marines stepped out. Booker, Zachary, and Elizabeth fired their revolvers, Daisy fired her carbine, the marines fired their assault rifles, the Vox shot his shotgun, and the Fireman and Big Sister used their fiery powers.

Spirry received the plethora of damage. He punched Booker, his shields lighting up. Booker's shields realigned and he drove it into Spirry, busting his chest open further when they erupted. Spirry shattered Booker's shields then punched him out.

The Big Sister teleported on Spirry's back, attacking him with fiery Plasmids and her needle. Spirry grabbed her and threw her into the wall, then slammed her back over his knee. As more bullets thudded against him, he attacked Zachary, breaking his shields then mashing his head into the wall; the old man was out.

The Fireman threw Devil's Kiss, bubbling Spirry's bleeding body, then pummeled the demon with his gauntlets and headbutted with his helm. Spirry kicked the Fireman in the crotch, and with such force the Fireman lifted off the floor; he fell over in great pain.

Elizabeth summoned a Motorized Patriot.

"Your end nears!" the Patriot warned, cranking his gun and ripping Spirry open further, his ris ribs and spine now visible, and his guts hanging out. The Patriot bashed Spirry with his Crank Gun, and then Spirry ripped the Patriot's head off. He jumped over the gun and grabbed the gears, ripping them out the Patriot's back, disabling him; he phased out of reality.

Daisy was the next target. She emptied her carbie, then swung it like a bat into Spirry while the marines and Vox Beast charged to help her. The Beast tackled into Spirry, smashing him against the wall. Spirry grabbed the Beast by the head and ripped the helmet off, then smashed the helmet into his head; the Beast fell over out cold.

"Greg!" Daisy yelled, hitting the butt of her carbine into Spirry, but that did little. He punched her in the head and she was out.

The marines affixed bayonets to their rifles and rammed them repeatedly into Spirry while shooting into him. He punched them out, now breathing like a furnace. Curiously enough, he no longer bled, and was constantly shaking.

The Zealot teleported in front of Spirry, slicing him up, and unleashed Murderous Crows. The Zealot swung across Spirry's throat, cutting down to the vertebrae, blood gushing out and drenching the Zealot's hood. Spirry drove his knee into the Zealot's sternum and he fell, dropping sword as well. The crows dissipated.

"Well, my turn..." Pinkerton Elizabeth said to herself as she stepped in front of Eleanor. Elizabeth raised her revolver and fired the last chambers into Spirry as he walked as if ready to fall apart. Once she was out of ammo, she pistol whipped Spirry. Despite exhaustion, torn tendons, and ripped muscles, Spirry managed to knee her in the jaw, and she hit the floor.

Eleanor was still in too much pain to even stand. She crawled away from the gimpy-moving Spirry, hearing his tendons, joints and muscles constantly pop. He then was hit by an Electrobolt. Spirry went on all fours and chaotically swiped his claws, ripping open the walls. Jack charged Spirry, skipping over the fallen, Electrobolting him again and then drop-kicking him in the head. The demon reared from impact and electrocution, nearly stepping on Eleanor, who rolled out of the way.

Jack got up on his knees, and thrust his arms into the hole his grenade, and all others' attacks, made. Spirry grabbed Jack's head, ready to break it, but then Jack ripped his arms out. He stood before the demon, now holding his warm, beating heart, arteries still connected to it. Spirry looked down at his own heart beating in Jack's hands.

Jack shouted, rearing; the heart snapped from its bed of arteries, splatting blood everywhere. Spirry remained standing, arms slightly raised, as if confused. He gradually began to fall, and heavily thumped onto his back, mouth open, wings spread apart.

Jack raised an eyebrow when Spirry's fingers and jaw started twitching.

"To make sure...you stay dead..." Eleanor knelt up, hands shaking as the last of her ADAM steamed out her body. With the last of her strength, she cast her last Plasmid.

The Anti-Enaedonai splashed upon Spirry. His body bubbled and steamed, the flesh liquefying. He slowly dissolved. Eleanor sighed with relief. She fell onto her hands, then let her face hit the floor.

"It's all over..."


	43. Epilogue - Agnus Dei

"Give us the girl, and wipe away the debt..." a man said softly.

"Does it also apply to her?" a woman asked.

"Well, the mirror's broken..."

"It certainly is, brother."

"Why do you think _He_ tossed it to the girl?"

"You think as a request of forgiveness?"

"No... I think as a means to an end."

"Are you suggesting _He_ knew it wouldn't end this way?"

"I am suggesting _He_ expected it would end some other way."

"Ah."

"Indeed."

"I've always believed one can change things!"

"I've always believed one could never avoid change."

"I think she's waking up..."

"I think she is."

"Hm, perhaps the mirror-"

"Applies to her as well?"

"I don't think Comstock's words apply to her, but-"

"We will find out..."

Eleanor gradually regained some of her senses, but everything was blurry. She lifted her head and saw the Luteces standing between her and the dissolving Spirry. The Luteces held the medallions, complete with their little containers.

"The Serpent?" Robert asked.

"Or the Lighthouse?" Rosalind suggested, extending her container a bit.

Eleanor frowned. "Neither. I just want to forget everything... I want this...this nightmare...gone..."

"My mother also had nightmares," Rosalind said, "but I don't regret my adventures."

 _Regret_...

"The brain adapts, even to create new memories from old ones," Robert said.

"But forgetting new memories is more difficult."

"I don't see a point in regret. What's done is done."

"I agree, brother."

The Luteces' gifts phased out of reality, and they went back to their usual poses.

Eleanor lifted her knees then sat on her ankles. She rubbed her eyes. "Well, now what? I entered the Cipher, but it just took me back into this...this fever dream..."

"The fever dream-"

"Is part of the Cipher," Rosalind finished for her brother.

"How?"

"It seems that while you were sedated, the Luminescent Biomass bonded with your mind," Robert replied.

"That was the essence of Rapture. And things got set in motion."

"Or _was_ set in motion. _He_ started _His_ experiment long ago, long before Rapture."

 _He did say something about all this being done before..._

" _He_ tried to takeover our experiment. Even mimicked our City of Tears, but _His_ City failed," Robert said.

" _His_ City rebelled against him."

"Created against Creator. Not only of the City, but everything else as well."

"What _He_ failed to understand was that _He_ chose to follow what _He_ wanted, rather than what _would_ happen."

"Quite illogical. I suppose being alive for hundreds of thousands of years really does drive one insane."

"Which is why we ended our experiment. Ended our City of Tears."

"But by remaking the Cipher..."

"The key to closing all the doors..."

"But whether the doors stay closed or not...is up to you."

Eleanor felt empty. She didn't really know what to do.

"I don't really want to talk about it..."

"Then you must face your own mirror," Rosalind instructed.

"Oh dear, I don't think she'll like this part..."

The twins looked at each other, then back to Eleanor. At the same time, they said, "Show us your answer."

The Luteces flickered, and phased out of reality. Eleanor's head hurt. She looked back to check on her friends. Jack, Booker, Elizabeth, and the others, were either sitting or kneeling, eyes beaming yellow. They slowly moved their hands in front of their faces, as if confused.

"The hell..." Daisy remarked weakly, unable to break free. Spirry's heart was near her, lifeless.

Eleanor closed her eyes and breathed deeply. She opened her eyes, her vision clear. She looked back at Spirry. He lied as a puddle of steaming blood and gelatinous flesh, his bones like sponges. Eleanor's mouth dropped. But it was not because of what happened to Spirry. Unconsciously lying in the remains of Spirry...

Knees shaking, Eleanor kept low as she scuttled. Once her toes received the warmth of steaming ADAM, she stood, and just stared at the girl covered with Spirry's dissolved tissue. The girl wore nothing but white panties and a bra. She was a bit taller than Eleanor, naturally narrow but covered with large, round, soft muscles. She had extremely long dark hair, reaching her waist. Her fingernails and toenails were like claws. Her visage was both chiseled and baby-faced.

"She's me..."

The other Eleanor coughed, but kept her eyes closed. Blood trickled out the corners of her mouth.

"Good disguise, huh?" the other Eleanor asked. She sat up with a groan and stared at her counterpart with bloodshot eyes. Eye bags and dark circles made her look quite sinister, enhancing her already evil look. Her deeper voice was evidence she was a mature woman.

Eleanor didn't know what to say or do. She felt like a lost, confused child.

"I don't think even _He_ knew." Evil Eleanor sat up, coughing blood, then laughed weakly. She telekinetically grasped Spirry's heart, flinging it to herself. She caught it, and crushed it in her hands. The heart bulged and blood spurted out. She grinned with that small mouth of hers.

"I...don't know what to say..."

"Then I'll talk for you." Evil Eleanor stood, skin drooling with blood and dissolved flesh. "Long ago, I escaped Rapture, just like you. I needed Father's memories and drives...to become what I always wanted to be. What _you_ always wanted to be." She ripped Spirry's heart apart, and threw the halves down.

"As you know, Elizabeth was an inhabitant of Rapture, and more than once. I had her essence, too. I learned of Tears. The world never saw me coming. I filled the ocean with corpses. But that wasn't enough. I wanted more pleasure; nothing else exists. So I used Tears, and filled more oceans with corpses..."

"And then you found Spirry's world..."

Evil Eleanor nodded, breathing through clenched teeth.

"His didn't last long. I don't know how evolution worked there, but I had a great time killing demons. His entire species were just like me...they existed for their own pleasure, obtained through bloodshed. Though, I had one enemy I could not defeat..."

"Black Sun..."

"They almost killed me. Spirry couldn't find me, but there was no escaping from Black Sun. I had no choice, but to enter Tears. Wherever I went, Black Sun followed, destroying more worlds than I ever could. Eventually, I found Spirry, and nearly killed him, made sure he was unconscious...then went inside his torn body. His flesh regenerated over mine, and I had a great sleep inside. Black Sun went after Spirry after giving up looking for me."

"And now, here you are..."

Evil Eleanor shifted in front of Eleanor, cupping the girl's babyish cheeks, and resting her forehead on hers. Eleanor's eyes got big and shiny.

"Yes. And here _you_ are. Replete of your ADAM, Plasmids, and suit... Baby girl, all helpless and hopeless, like a Little Sister naked and alone in Rapture..."

Eleanor felt her counterpart's breath on her face. Smelled like roses. Eleanor was pushed against the wall, head smacking the wood. Evil Eleanor leaned into her, eyebrows brushing.

Eleanor's heart drummed. Her skin crawled. Her spine tingled. She felt the other Eleanor clutch her gown and lift it up her belly. Eleanor softly gasped when she grabbed her cunt.

"And I want you for myself. I don't like anything except me. I hope Rapture's homophobic subculture didn't get under your skin. I never thought I'd say this, but I _am_ looking forward to fucking myself." She slowly slid her hand up Eleanor's chest.

 _Oh, God, please just let me die..._

Eleanor slipped under her evil version's arm and ran off, opposite direction of home and everyone else.

"Oh, please, we both know I could outrun you even underwater... But keep running, make it last, little girl."

Memories rushed Eleanor's mind.

 _Dammit, Eleanor, think! Think hard!_

The essence of Rapture still remained in her, but she did not have Plasmids anymore. But she did have something else...

Evil Eleanor teleported in front of her prey, who skid to a stop and ran through a door. Eleanor ended up in the Sea of Doors, the parts of stone bridges shifting into place as she ran. She looked back, her evil version walking after her with a grin and unblinking eyes.

Eleanor changed paths here and there, but no matter what she tried, her pursuer kept getting closer. Up ahead was the Rapture Lighthouse, the double doors left slightly open. She entered, ran down the stairs. No Bathysphere.

"Shit!"

Eleanor thought hard. Her anxiety skyrocketed. She put her hands together and tried pulling them apart. Bluish rays of light emerged, and then, a Tear ripped open. She jumped in, landing hard on her face against a floor somewhere in Rapture.

Eleanor lifted her face, and blinked. Her evil counterpart teleported here, stomping on the back of her head. She groaned, and was lifted telekinetically and slammed into the floor. Evil Eleanor grabbed her other self by the head, picked her head, and smashed it into the floor. Eleanor's head cracked and spurted blood, but she remained conscious, barely.

"I think I'll eat your heart after I'm done with you," evil Eleanor said, then gripped Eleanor's body with psychokinesis. Eleanor's joints and bones stretched and popped; she cried out.

Eleanor received a flurry of blows into the ribs and stomach, then she was slammed into the floor back-first. Blood splashed out her mouth, and she groaned. Evil Eleanor began spreading Eleanor's legs and arms.

"I hope this really hurts."

 _You bitch..._

Eleanor felt around, and found a big syringe, which looked rather familiar from years ago... Gripping it, she plunged it into her evil version's sternum, sucking fluid out her heart. Evil Eleanor smacked the syringe out of herself and Eleanor's hand, then stomped on her sternum. Blood splashed out Eleanor's mouth as she convulsed upwards. Eleanor made a gurgly cry, then flopped back down, barely breathing, and choking.

"Aww, you look so beautiful like this, you know," evil Eleanor said, mounting her other self and stroking the girl's pretty forehead. "Actually...I think I'll keep you alive. Your friends won't last long against me. Soon, it will only be me and you, and then... I can't wait to see the look of your face."

Evil Eleanor grunted as a needle poked through her throat. A second appeared. She grunted and raised her arms.

"She's the bad Eleanor!"

"Bad Sister!"

"She's bad!"

"The one who kills us!"

"Bad! Bad!"

"The one who kills us all!"

"Kill it! Kill it!"

Like popcorn, a bunch of blue-eyed Little Sister brunettes leapt upon evil Eleanor, who became their pincushion. Evil Eleanor thrashed about, but the little girls held on, stabbing her again and again. A telekinetic blast hurled the little things off, most syringes still embedded in her.

"You! Little...nothings!" evil Eleanor yelled, ripping out a few syringes and throwing them into the floor. Struggling to stay on her feet, she swerved, just in time for Eleanor to collapse while driving her syringe into her evil counterpart's heart.

The syringe filled until the bottle shattered; it continued sucking evil Eleanor's ADAM out, gushing onto the floor. Evil Eleanor groaned and slowly collapsed, Eleanor's syringe still in her chest, the torrent of blood steadily dying. Eleanor collapsed near her evil counterpart, exhausted from wounds and injuries.

"Eleanor!" a child squeaked. Eleanor turned her head, seeing a small Little Sister who looked different. This child did not have glowing yellow eyes. Instead, the veins in her eyes and under her skin glowed dark red. It was Ellie.

Ellie scampered to Eleanor, and then a Tear opened. A little woman, covered with bandages head to toe, stepped out the Tear, beckoning Eleanor with a skinless hand.

"Eleanor! Come on!" the skinless Elizabeth called. The Lighthouse began shaking, concrete and metal cracking. Elizabeth's eyes developed shadows, but the rim beamed white. She grabbed her head, writhing and groaning from pain.

"Come on! This way!" Ellie repeated, grabbing Eleanor's arm, trying to drag her. Eleanor groaned from pain, but rolled into the Tear, the Little Sisters jumping in as it closed.

Everyone reappeared near the water in the Rapture Lighthouse lobby. Eleanor was too hurt to get up. Elizabeth's body beamed white rays, her body erupting with a Siren-effect. She writhed in pain, but managed to get Eleanor over her shoulders.

"Wow! You're pretty heavy!" Elizabeth remarked, but she managed to carry Eleanor up the shaking stairs, body beaming with white lights. All around, dust and bits of building fell. "I'd open a Tear, but I can't like this! I didn't know breaking the mirror would destroy the Sea of Doors! Honest!"

Elizabeth's shins and knees kept smacking and scraping against the steps. She sometimes fell, but kept getting up, her Siren-effect making everything worse.

"I can take the pain! I've been through worse!"

The Little Sisters scampered up nervously, looking around frantically.

"Is it gonna fall on us?"

"It better!"

"Please stay up, Rapture!"

"Go! Just go!" Elizabeth shouted.

The Rapture Lighthouse was breaking apart. Dust and debris flowed out the entrance, Elizabeth, Eleanor, and the Little Sisters emerging, colored grey, everyone coughing.

Elizabeth made her way down the steps along the railings. The stones shifted into reality, creating a new bridge over the wild, rippling waters. Another set of shifting stones appeared, and Jack, Booker, blue Elizabeth, Pinkerton Elizabeth, old Elizabeth, Porter, Tenenbaum, Daisy and the Vox, the marines, Cindy, Sofia, and Zachary appeared. Songbird swam in the waters, poking his head out nearby.

"What's going on!?" Booker yelled.

"Just go! MOVE IT!" the bandaged Elizabeth screamed.

Eleanor looked up. Coiled around the Lighthouse was the fleshy serpent, staring back at her. The serpent was huge, constricting the Lighthouse and destroying it. With a mighty crash, the Lighthouse imploded, the serpent falling with the collapsing rubble. It all fell with a great splash, sending a big wave the plowed over everyone. Songbird lifted his wings, using them as railings t prevent anyone from fall off the shifting bridge.

As the debris and dust waved, Eleanor could see the fleshy serpent's head, eyes beaming yellow, mouth agape.

"Someone's inside!" Booker yelled, and he ran towards the snake.

Eleanor watched as Booker grabbed someone's arm and pulled him out the serpent's maw, the beast's tongue coiled around Booker's leg. The Rapture Lighthouse continued sinking, pulling the serpent with it, everything imploding into the depths.

Booker dragged the man he saved along the bridge, both coughing. The man wore a black suit and seemed rather frail.

"Alexander..." Eleanor whispered. His skin was very pink, but he had reverted into his human form well enough.

"Th-thank you..." Gil said.

"Don't mention it."

The shaking intensified, but only underwater. The waters rippled, and all around, the other bridges began breaking.

"We need to keep moving!" bandaged Elizabeth yelled.

"Let me carry her!" Booker yelled, grabbing Eleanor off Elizabeth's shoulders, while Zachary helped Sofia walk.

"Run, children! Run!" Tenenbaum encouraged.

Everyone went as fast as they could. The shifting bridge underneath them broke, and everyone fell into the water. But they kept moving, realizing they stood on Songbird's back as he swam; he raised his wings to serve as a platform to prevent anyone from falling off. Many looked back, seeing everything behind them sort of melt into the water where the Rapture Lighthouse sunk.

"We're only gonna have one shot at this!" bandaged Elizabeth said. "All Elizabeths, focus your Tears right up ahead! Now!"

The Elizabeths and Songbird, in unison, opened Tears in the same spot, creating a powerful singularity. The Tear was spherical and very bright.

The Sea of Doors contracted towards the centre, as if being sucked by a black hole, the water draining rapidly. Songbird dove into the spherical Tear, everyone holding on as the power pushed against the Buzzard, but he gradually prevailed. Whiteness erupted everywhere, blinding everyone.

With a deafening roar, the Sea of Doors shattered...

* * *

Peace. That's what Eleanor felt. The powerful whiteness slowly faded away, gradually revealing gentle waters. Eleanor saw her reflection. She was smiling kindly, wearing her Big Sister suit, helmet off. She turned to check on her friends.

Eleanor saw a greyscale scene of Booker, Zachary, Daisy and the Vox, the marines, Gil, and the Elizabeths, emerging from their baptisms in slow motion. They climbed upon the steps of the Rapture Lighthouse, wondering what was going on.

 _This endless nightmare...the Mirror of Sin...is finally over. Forever._

The waters continued showing Eleanor greyscale scenes in slow motion. Songbird and the Big Sister arose from the depths, as did a Bathysphere. The Bathysphere opened, Jack, Porter, Ellie and Tenenbaum stepping out and onto the exterior of the Lighthouse, regrouping with the others. Everyone looked up, and saw Vox Zeppelins descending.

 _By the end of it all... We battled. We survived. There was no other way for us to reach victory._

The Vox Zeppelins landed in the gentle waters. Songbird crawled upon the Lighthouse, free of damage and sealife, good as new. He mounted the Lighthouse and then took to the skies.

Zachary put his hands on the stone railings, scanning the waters, calling out for someone. His head dropped, but then he saw Sinclair's Lifeboat ascend with a big splash. He yelled for someone, then jumped into the waters.

Once the lifeboat became stable, the Little Sisters emerged. Zachary gripped the railings and pulled himself up, running across the vessel. Sofia weakly stepped outside the lifeboat and fell, Zachary catching her. They spun to the floor, together, in each other's arms.

 _The Darkness in me, a fragment of the Mirror, just temporary suffering._

Eleanor's friends' eyes beamed yellow, as did the Vox. Static and tuning emitted from them, but they did not suffer, but they were a little confused and worried. The ghostly Elizabeth appeared, even though Songbird did not project her. Her aura intensified as she examined herself.

 _Now that we are free from the Darkness, we know ourselves..._

The Elizabeths' bodies beamed white rays. They become like angels cloaked in light, and merged. Booker tried to grab his Elizabeth's hand, but she was just light. The Elizabeths' phased into two radiating entities. When the light faded away, only two Elizabeths remained. One in a blue blouse, a daughter of Columbia, the other in modern attire, an immigrant of Rapture. They were looking at their own hands, confused. Booker leaned to his Elizabeth, asking if she was alright.

 _Spirry believed that suffering was the meaning of life. He wanted to harness the Darkness so that all would become like him. For him, life was accepting agony and becoming one with it. He was wrong..._

Both Elizabeths looked at Sinclair's Lifeboat. They called out for someone, and both jumped into the waters. Booker called after Elizabeth, and he was next to take a plunge.

 _But...as broken as Spirry was, how could I misjudge him for what he was born as? A choice he neither made nor had? And through him could I face my own Darkness, at my worst. I bled. I suffered. I wept. I fought. And I was given victory at my darkest time by the little ones...for they never gave up..._

The Elizabeths and Booker were greeted by the Little Sisters, who scuttled to them curiously. The Elizabeths smiled kindly, but kept scanning the area, looking for someone...

Eleanor knelt, kindly looking upon him. She knew he was kindly looking back through his visor.

 _The Rapture dream is over, but in waking, I am reborn._

She sweetly put a hand over his helmet.

 _This world is not ready for me...yet here I am._ Eleanor began to cross Father's arms for him.

 _It would be so easy to misjudge them. You are my conscience, father, and I need you to guide me..._

Eleanor gently positioned her needle, and inserted it into Father's suit. She had a solemn face, and could not hold back a little tears. Once the transfer began, Eleanor slightly tilted her head, and relaxed as Father's consciousness entered her own. She smiled warmly, and withdrew the needle, then turned a few valves.

 _You will always be with me now, father. Your memories, your drives..._ She took the apparatus off, and looked at her opened hand while walking to the waters. _And when I need you, you'll be there on my shoulder, whispering..._

The Rapture Lighthouse remained, peaceful, just like the ocean. She knelt before the edge of the lifeboat, stroked her hair, and just stared at her own reflection. No more monster. Little angels gradually appeared, one of them giving Eleanor a pat on the back.

Eleanor steadily turned her head, seeing Cindy in her cute purple dress, still holding Little Daddy. She lifted him up for Eleanor, who gently retrieved it. She moved him to the side, a few Little Sisters stepping back curiously. Eleanor held him out over the waters, and let him slide off. The girls watched him sink, his last farewell...

 _If Utopia is not a place, but a people, then we must choose carefully._

The sun began to rise, one of the Little Sisters raising a hand. Eleanor looked at the rising sun.

 _For the world is about to change. And in our story...Rapture...was just the beginning..._

Eleanor breathed deeply, a cool breeze blowing by. In the reflections, the Elizabeths appeared, then Booker, Jack, Tenenbaum, Porter, Gil, the Big Sister, Daisy, Zachary and Sofia. Everyone felt at peace. Some looked up as Songbird soared overhead, Columbia floating out the sunny horizon...

"It's beautiful." Eleanor smiled. She slowly looked at Mother, who remained stolid, but at peace. Mother looked back. "I could not be conceived naturally, but I know whose genes you used."

Zachary looked at Eleanor. They both had blue eyes for a reason.

Eleanor looked back at Father, noticing two faint fellow lights beaming through his visor. Static and tuning noises developed. Booker's eyes lit up.

"Booker, you're bleeding." He touched his nose, then the lights, static and tuning of Booker and Father phased out of reality.

Father's helmet rolled to the side, the canvas and gloves flattening. There was no one inside anymore.

"And I know who Father was."

"The realities are...merging, yet restarting," Rapture Elizabeth said, putting a hand on her hip.

"I uprooted the tree, but the seeds are growing," Columbian Elizabeth said with relief.

"So...I can go back and...be with Anna?" Booker asked.

"Yes. Soon, it will be time for us to say goodbye... Eventually, we will return home, the place we are supposed to be..." Eleanor commented.

"Oh, I can slow that down, Eleanor. With Black Sun gone, I can control the Tears much more now. Not quite as much as I used to, though," Columbian Elizabeth said.

"I think it's because there's two of us now, permanently. Guess we share half the power each," Rapture Elizabeth suggested. "We'll return to our home realities...later."

Jack kept his arms crossed, enjoying the sunrise. Ellie and he made eye contact, and they smiled. Ellie looked at Booker.

"You're Brock, but grown-up! I know it!" Ellie squeaked, though Booker was a bit puzzled.

"Well, that was quite the adventure, wasn't it?" Porter asked.

"Not one I would go on again," Tenenbaum admitted.

"I wanna go on another one..." Cindy pouted.

"I am just thrilled it is over," Gil Alexander said, then shivered. "You would not believe how claustrophobic it is to be stuck inside a living, breathing body..."

Gil's comment made Eleanor put a hand on her belly. The Sea Slug was still there, but it was not Spirry anymore. _He_ was gone, forever, how it was supposed to be...

"So, what is everyone gonna do, now?" Daisy asked.

"Well, I have to continue my work on The Thinker."

"The Thinker? It was not destroyed?" Gil asked.

"It was rebuilt in London. Your expertise with ADAM would be quite useful, Mr. Alexander."

"Ah, why, yes. Yes, of course. It will be nice to work back under sunlight," Gil said.

"Porter, could I go with you? We have more little ones to raise and then return with Sinclair's help, and a big girl to cure of ADAM sickness." The Big Sister looked at Tenenbaum.

"Absolutely, Tenenbaum. This time, we'll make so much more progress!" Porter grinned. "I-I can't wait to get started! Pearl would be so proud..."

"Huh, yeah..." Zachary said, looking as Columbia neared.

"So, I guess we ain't fightin' anymore. Columbia better be a better place," Daisy commented.

"Yes, it already is. I can feel it. But... How did all this happen, anyway?" Zachary asked, looking at Booker.

"You mean, what is it about me that caused so many worlds to pop in?" Booker said.

"Yeah... If the soul is real, well, look what it led to."

"A _Dark_ _Soul..._ " Eleanor remarked.

"But what is a soul? How does it work?" Booker asked.

Nobody had an answer.

"God only knows," Rapture Elizabeth said with a shrug. _"God only knows..."_ she sang...

* * *

"Yes, Comstock. I forgive you. Just as you taught me." Lady Comstock had invited Booker, Zachary, the Elizabeths, Eleanor, Tenenbaum, Porter, the Zealot (who no longer wore his uniform), Gil and Jack for tea and biscuits in Comstock House, even Daisy. However, Daisy declined the offer, saying she preferred to be with people like herself. Daisy and her Vox soldiers celebrate in the streets with the citizens.

Ellie played with Cindy and the other Little Sisters, chasing friendly Murderous Crows as well as men wearing devil suits, which were surely mocks of Spirry. The Luteces minimally practised various sports outside while chatting about theories. The Big Sister went swimming in Battleship Bay, and actually swam off the vessel, but teleported back on.

"I am glad to discover you regained your health. And fertility." Lady Comstock took her seat. Zachary looked a bit guilty.

"We're not mad at you, Zachary. I don't expect you to leave the city you founded. I was a single mother, after all," Sofia said. "I respect you for your efforts. I will also found a great congregation of Utopians, someday." Zachary nodded, but still felt bad for his wife.

"Listen, Annabelle, I will make up for it. I am not the same man anymore, I-" He was interrupted by her chuckle.

"It's alright, Zachary... You got another woman pregnant. A sign that you are fertile, a blessing from God. I will be expecting a real miracle child this time."

Both Elizabeths snickered. Zachary looked a bit embarrassed.

"Give the guy a break, wontcha?" Porter remarked in good humour.

"You will make a good father, Zachary, I know it. Let's leave the past behind. Now, have some tea..." She sipped tea. "Zachary, if we will have another baby, what shall we name her?"

"An... Anya."

The Elizabeths smiled.

"That's a cute name," Eleanor commented, and sipped her tea. She examined the porcelain. _Huh, porcelain of Louis the 15th..._

"What about your child's name, Sofia?" Tenenbaum asked.

"Oliver," Sofia replied instantly.

"Well, I can't wait to see my nephew and niece," Columbian Elizabeth said.

"Do you plan on having kids?" Lady Comstock asked.

"Not really. Heh-heh..."

"If you don't want kids, you usually get them," the Zealot remarked.

"This tea is really good, Mrs. Comstock," Gil said. "Once we get back down, everything we learned from Columbia and Rapture will create a true utopia. I am sure of it."

"Sounds good. I have places to visit down below, too," Rapture Elizabeth said, finishing her tea.

Jack didn't say much, as usual. _When Mum and Dad put me on that plane to visit my cousins in England, they told me, 'Son, you're special, you were born to do great things.' You know what? They were right._

Outside, Columbia was celebrating New Years' Day. Both Vox and Founder forces celebrated together amidst citienry. The Zealots, Handymen and Firemen no longer wore their uniforms.

Rosalind threw a ball, Robert hit it. The ball went flying well beyond Columbia, and ended up hitting the soaring Songbird in the head. The Buzzard wondered what happened, eyes yellow.

"Good shot!" Rosalind congratulated, watching Songbird fly off.

"You know...life has-"

"More meaning?" Rosalind finished.

"I at first regretting ending our experiment, but now-"

"That it's over, life is good."

"At long last, the Prophet was purified by the blood of the Lamb."

* * *

Blackness.

"Booker, are you ready for this?" Elizabeth asked. He took a deep breath.

"Yes. Let's do it. And Elizabeth... I'm sorry, and... Thank you. Thanks for everything."

"Don't mention it, Booker. We all had our crosses to bear. I'm just glad we can finally take you where you belong. Home."

Booker awoke with a gasp. He was seated at his greyscale office desk. No door banging, no demands. He heard a gentle music box playing...

"Anna?" Booker called, getting up. He felt nervous. He went to the bedroom, slowly pushing the door open. "Anna? Anna..." Booker leaned into the crib.

The angel was sleeping.

"She's beautiful, isn't she?" Columbian Elizabeth asked, who was leaning against the wall with arms crossed.

"She is," Rapture Elizabeth agreed, standing against the opposite wall with her arms crossed.

"Booker?" a woman's voice called from below. Booker gasped and turned. He was quite surprised.

"Esther? Is that you?" The woman laughed.

"No, Mr. DeWitt, it's me, Annabelle."

Booker's heart lightened.

"I...I can't believe it...I... Elizabeth..."

She smiled.

"Booker, this is where you belong," Columbian Elizabeth said.

"It's not much, but an office in the city-"

"This is actually an office in your homestead, Booker," Rapture Elizabeth corrected. "You're all set, Booker. We got it right for you."

Booker raised a hand to his face, as if trying not to cry. He deeply and slowly breathed. He felt a little static and tuning. He recalled when Zachary tried to pull baby Anna trough the Tear, resulting her decapitation.

 _It never happened, not this time... Comstock knows this for sure. He's moved on from his past. So have I._

"Elizabeth, I... Thank you. Thank you so much. But...what about you?" She smiled.

"I had quality time with my father. But it's time for me to go." She headed to the window, as did her other counterpart.

"Wait, Elizabeth! You two will come back someday, right? To visit? Saying goodbye to Eleanor was hard enough..."

The Elizabeths faced him, eyebrows high. "Ya, of course!" they chirped at the same time. Booker as relieved.

"We said the same Zachary. We will be back, we promise," Rapture Elizabeth assured.

"We just gotta get going. We have our lives to live," Columbian Elizabeth said. Booker nodded.

"Booker? Are you talking to someone?" Annabelle called.

"I'm talking to my daughter," Booker called back. Anna made gurgly noises and woke up. Booker picked her up. The Elizabeths smiled warmly their tiny equivalent looking back at them.

"You're such a great dad."

"You take good care of her."

"I will. I promise."

"Good!" Elizabeth and Elizabeth walked towards the window.

"Elizabeth... See you later."

"See you later, Booker."

"See you, Booker," Rapture Elizabeth said, and a Tear appeared.

"So, what do you wanna do in Paris?" Columbian Elizabeth asked.

"First, we gotta get you something better to wear... Then we'll watch Star Wars..." The Tear closed behind them.

"Booker? How's baby?" Annabelle asked, stepping into Booker's office...

Later that sunset, Booker sat at his porch, holding Anna. As the sun set, he held his baby to his forehead, and smiled.

At long last, he could love his family...

* * *

The Elizabeths sat by a small round table, enjoying Paris and the Seine River. A gramophone played Edith Piaf, and the bustling Parisian populace enjoyed themselves as much as the Elizabeths.

"Hah...just like my dream..." Rapture Elizabeth whispered to herself, sipping a glass of red wine. The painter began talking to Columbian Elizabeth, having painted a picture of her. She was quite thrilled, in a childish manner. The other Elizabeth chuckled, Columbian Elizabeth lifting the picture of herself and nearly twirling with it.

"Wow, mister! It's beautiful!" Columbian Elizabeth squealed. "If only I had a puppy! I would _love_ if you drew me holding a puppy! Oh! But while I'm standing at the Eiffel Tower!"

Rapture Elizabeth chuckled again, "I used to be so immature..."

She noticed Sander Cohen working on his own painting, stroking the brush as if he wanted to swim through his canvas. He painted bunnies chasing after red balloons along the river. She raised an eyebrow, and sipped some more wine.

"How did he get here? Hm. Well, whatever...he doesn't seem crazy this time. Still looks like a clown, though..."

Rapture Elizabeth breathed deeply. She took a look around.

 _Nothing's going grey... No bird from Snow White... No flames... No Sally running away..._

Much weight fell off her shoulders.

"It took so much just to visit Paris..."

 _Do you regret anything?_

She smiled at her own question. A breeze came as children ran around playing.

 _"Non, je ne regrette rien, alors laissez moi vivre comme je veux..."_

* * *

Jack lied in hospital, thinking about his life...

 _Zhey offered you the city._

 _And you refused it._

 _And what did you do instead? What I have come to expect of you... You saved them. You gave zhem the one thing that was stolen from them. A chance..._

 _A chance to learn._

 _To find love._

 _To live..._

 _And in zhe end, what was your reward?_

As the elderly Jack lied in his bed, Sarah the doll lying next to his head. He thought about how he raised his adopted daughters... He remembered their graduation ceremonies, their marriages, their children... He felt Sally's hand grab his. He squeezed back.

 _You never said... But I think I know._

Several more of Jack's children held his hand.

 _A family..._

Eleanor gently held Jack's other hand.

The two Elizabeths, and the now-adult Ellie and Cindy, also held Jack's hand. An elderly Tenenbaum sat nearby, observing peacefully. Booker, Porter, Alexander, a bearded Zachary, Sofia, and Lady Comstock, were also present. Oliver stood by his mother, Anya by her father, and Annabelle Watson and her daughter Anna with Booker.

"Thank you, Jack," Eleanor whispered. "Would you kindly relax?" She felt him squeeze her hand.

Jack peacefully passed away with family and friends.

Everyone lowered their heads, paying their respects. Zachary sighed quietly. The former Prophet looked to the side, and saw Sally, all grown up. Rapture Elizabeth's face dropped, as did Zachary's.

Sally held his hand. They made eye contact, and Sally smiled.

"Thank you." Sally looked at Rapture Elizabeth. "Thank you."

Zachary and Rapture Elizabeth nodded. He felt much weight roll off his shoulders, Lady Comstock comforted him by touching his shoulder.

Everyone took turns hugging each other. Soon, Booker and Zachary came face-to-face, both unblinking and unflinching. Stern, tough memories came, but...

They shook hands, stiffly.

At long last, their extradimensional rivalry was truly at an end.

* * *

Eleanor walked along the streets of Sligo during one evening, wearing a raincoat that foggy day. She heard some young adults laughing as they left a pub. She saw Cathal, Aileen, Barry, Patrick, and the Scottish girl Cindy, all of them drunk and happy. They walked past Eleanor, not reacting to her. In this world, they never met her.

Eleanor watched her friends go. Cathal squeezed Aileen's butt and she giggled. Eleanor's heart sank, head low.

"Me never getting a boyfriend...that must also be a constance," she whispered, and continued walking. "Happy Birthday, Eleanor, you're alone again this February 28th..."

With a heavy heart, Eleanor continued her walk. She went to the churches she had seen before, but found no comfort. She felt like a stranger. Eleanor sometimes checked for Spirry, but never saw any big red things. Ironically, she would not even mind chatting with him, if she could...

Eleanor walked all night along the beaches, alone in the dark. Her only company were the waves. She ended up out of town, but did not care. She walked on and on. Tired from so much walking, she decided to sit down, and stare into the ocean. The sun began rising, the first rays shining into Eleanor's eyes. Her eyelids became heavy. She yawed and lied down.

"The sun... I'm still curious about you..." Eleanor watched the sunrise. "Beautiful. One day, I'll go somewhere... Close to the sun...and pay you a visit. Everyone will say it is impossible, but I'll do it anyways..." She yawned again.

She thought about that one scene she saw back in the Cipher, before she met Spirry. The scene with Booker holding Anna...

Eleanor wept. The ocean air felt so cold on her warm eyes. She took a deep breath, then exhaled slowly. The tears kept going.

"You will always be with me, Father..." Eleanor whispered, "But I still wish... That I could be small again, and just be your baby..."

Lullabyed by the waves, the baby girl soon fell asleep. She dreamt of the sun, blazing in space. The dream showed Venus, and a large spaceship built by Nikola Tesla...

Then, she found herself swimming in the ocean in her Big Sister suit, exploring the underwater plants, corals, and animals. She even saw that shark who attacked her, and the beautiful oarfish she befriended. And then, incredibly, she stumbled upon Little Daddy, sitting on the bottom of the ocean. Little Daddy was writing on a piece of paper with a quill. Once he finished, he proudly held the paper in both hands, and presented it to Eleanor.

 _We may have been forced,_ _  
_ _To love like father and daughter,_ _  
_ _But now I know,_ _  
_ _You really are my sweet little girl..._ _  
_ _Eleanor._ _  
_ _Even after all these years,_ _  
_ _And what they've done to separate us,_ _  
_ _You still want me in your life,_ _  
_ _My sweet, lovely girl..._ _  
_ _Eleanor._ _  
_ _I have no idea,_ _  
_ _What I did to deserve,_ _  
_ _Such a beautiful little girl,_ _  
_ _My sweet, caring daughter..._ _  
_ _Eleanor,_ _  
_ _Now my time's almost over..._ _  
_ _I want you to know,_ _  
_ _How much that I love you,_ _  
_ _My sweet little angel,_ _  
_ _Eleanor..._


	44. Trivia

**Special Thanks**

The Wattpad user googlguy11new is the author of the ending poem, used by a semi-request with permission. Thank you googlguy11new for the poem!

The FanFiction user Feredes was a loyal reader, and very useful in helping me understand some things in BioShock Infinite, and reworking a chapter or two. Thank you Feredes for your feedback, corrections, suggestions, and loyalty!

I don't know if you're still reading this fanfic, but thank you BenRG for posting multiple reviews!

Very special thanks to Ken Levine, Sarah Bolger, Gary Schyman, FanFiction, Wattpad, 2K Boston, 2K Australia, 2K Marin, Irrational Games, all the publishers, all the staff, and all those involved in the making of the BioShock series!

* * *

 **Trivia**

The FanFiction user Feredes made the idea of Comstock having another child, but who would not plagiarized any previous name, instead going for Anya. Following the user's advice, Comstock's true miracle child with Annabelle Watson became Anya, who is planned to be a main character in the sequel to my BioShock fanfic trilogy, if it'll ever occur.

Pinkerton Elizabeth's revolver, The Ambassador, is a reference to one of Spy's weapons from Team Fortress 2, as well as a reference to a Garry's Mod screenshot depicting a fierce Elizabeth wielding The Ambassador and a cigarette.

Bookerstock's revolver, a Smith & Wesson Model 29, a .44 Magnum, is a reference to Clint Eastwood's titular role in Dirty Harry, who also wields such a Magnum.

The 'sad ending' of BioShock 2 is the only video game ending to have made me cry a little. BioShock 2 is my favorite out of the series, as it left a deep impact in me. Although I don't have kids, I felt my paternal instincts kick in playing that game. Eleanor Lamb is my favorite female video game character, ever!

Eleanor obtained Electrobolt upon merging with The Thinker, something I forgot to mention.

I had plans for Eleanor to have dreams correlating with Father Comstock's prophesies. Since it is unclear if Eleanor is one version of Elizabeth or not, I decided to scrap that idea.

Originally, Eleanor was meant to sacrifice herself to defeat her evil counterpart, allowing Booker to relive his life with Anna, hence the coverart and title. I would not be able to emotionally handle such an outcome.

When a child, Eleanor mentions Ireland in a recording, in regards to capturing and escaping in a submarine with Amir. The voice actress for Eleanor, Sarah Bolger, is Irish, so it made perfect sense to have Eleanor go to Ireland.

Eleanor's birthday is February 28th, the same birthday as her voice actress.

Like Eleanor Lamb, Sarah Bolger naturally has a broad, smooth jawline and forehead, and big blue eyes, but is blonde.

Cindy mentions she made the Big Daddy doll, a mistake I forgot to fix but couldn't find. Hopefully I will find it during editing.

Originally, Delta was meant to be brought back by Eleanor and help fight against Spirry, but then die in the action, much to Eleanor's horror. In the end, I felt it was redundant and predictable, so I stuck with revealing that Delta is one version of Booker.

The ending was originally meant to be different, following the conflict between Booker and Zachary while they wrestled over the baby Anna. I couldn't figure out how to implement this, though.

 _A_ _Dream_ is the first fanfic I finished in several years. It's essential meaning is that we cannot achieve our dreams without enduring sacrifice and suffering, while defeating our personal demons, and by the end of it all, dreams remain dreams. They are not necessarily what we really want or can achieve, but the adventures they create make us who we are.

I started the fanfic in Prince George, British Columbia, Canada, and finished it in Tyler, Texas, USA, in a hotel suite. Finishing this fanfic feels like I started a new phase in my life.

My writing style tends to overwrite, overwork, and overdescribe almost everything. This fanfic allowed me to realize my redundancy and weaknesses, allowing me to develop better conciseness and clarity.

Benny Chairman is Benny from Fallout New Vegas. Since Fallout New Vegas has an achievement that is also a BioShock reference, I just had to take something from FONV. In this fanfic, the Great Khans were just a criminal biker gang, similar to Hell's Angels. The Great Khans were meant to be rivals of the Irish Mob and the Pinkertons, but I couldn't find a way to implement gang wars so left it out.

Originally, Lady Comstock was meant to play a larger role in Columbia, being more evil than Father Comstock. I was unable to implement this, and so decided to leave her a Siren.

Michael put Elizabeth into the coffin to trigger the Siren, as he hoped to learn from it by connecting his consciousness with the two. He only partly succeeded. Sometime afterwards, he Spliced to learn a short-range but powerful form of Winter Blast.

Ellie's Big Daddy was killed by the black entity when she sought out Spirry in the abyss. Originally, Ellie's Big Daddy was meant to be found stuck within biomechanical structures by Eleanor in Drained Rapture, having been converted like the other Black Sun soldiers, serving as a mini boss. Due to lack of energy and time, I had to skip this idea. He was planned to make an appearance in the sequel, if I ever get to it sometime after Close to the Sun is released and I can play it.

Ellie is a Little Sister version of Elizabeth, and Brock a child version of Booker. Ellie's Little Sister conditioning is merged with Enaedonai. She hallucinated Spirry's voice and memories in the form of a black dragon, allowing her to explore the Luminescent Biomass and find the abyss, awakening the black entity. Her Big Daddy came in time to fight the black entity, drilling the skull open, but was eventually killed. After mourning, Ellie hallucinates a hidey hole in the black entity's split skull, and enters it, merging with the black entity, who returns to its world.

The black entity is unusual in that it consists of a female Spirry's body but male Spirry's host who became one, alluding to the sexual dimorphism of black dragonfish. Whether this is incest or not is anybody's guess.

Blue Elizabeth was infected by Enaedonai, which grants ageless regeneration, but she would eventually gradually transform into a fleshy monster. I was unable to implement this due to lack of time, energy, and life problems.

Sander Cohen and Videre are rare examples of individuals who were unable to be fully transformed by Enaedonai, even after thousands of years.

Originally, Michael Vay Atar was meant to be Booker merged with Spirry, from another time and place. This would be revealed when Michael's eyes grew back and his hair and beard cut.

I had plans for Lovecraftian imagery/monsters to play the role of Spirry and his Enigma, to make the fanfic feel more retro. Monsters like Cthulhu, Bokrug, or Mother Hydra would have been cool, but I concluded I didn't know enough about H.P. Lovecraft to use his themes appropriately. For example, the black entity is similar to Mother Hydra.

When Eleanor enters the realm of Black Sun, the 'armoured soldiers' are conquistador versions of Mandalorians from the Star Wars franchise. Their foes, the Kondrikai, are an original species who debuted in Psychosis, my Mass Effect fanfic, which is set in the future of the Black Sun world.

The Conquistador-Mandalorians speak New Mando'a, my version of Mando'a with some Spanish rules and words mixed in.

The Kondrikai (the cloaking reptilian beings) speak a language I created, but it's mostly unfinished. It is also the same language Spirry's species spoke, who taught the evolving Kondrikai before Spirry destroyed his own race while Evil Eleanor and Biomech Spirry caused great chaos. At around the same time, humans were evolving, resulting in the Mandalorians. The Armanen, a Germanic race who evolved, studied the ruins of Black Sun and were eventually consumed by it, Biomech Spirry converting them into horrors for his own purposes.

The idea of a 'black sun' is a common symbol in mythologies around the world, especially Europe and the Americas. It represents the underworld and the cyclic nature of the world, alluding and foreshadowing our cast's descent into a hellish, subterranean realm to defeat evil and be victorious.

Spirry is a recurring villain in both my original works and fanfics. He was created well over a decade ago, and there is still a story in the RuneScape Stories Forum, dating to 2009, that mentions him. Although I've tried to bury him multiple times, he's always stuck with me, I never knew why.

Spirry's true name, Mikha'el, is a Hebrew name that is also a question, meaning 'Who is like God?' Spirry's last name, Va'Atar, is fictional, but also the name of the primordial ancestor of his race.

Originally, Spirry was meant to be like Fontaine's final boss form, but skinless. Spirry (as Michael) would have been extremely Spliced up by the Luminescent Biomass that drove him insane after ten years. He would have been a priestly scientist studying the abyss, but was not affiliated with Rapture, having explored the abyss beforehand.

La'seire, Spirry's sister, was created and drawn by my friend Elizabeth. Unlike BioShock's Elizabeth, my friend is tall and fair-haired, but lacks curves.

Drained Rapture was inspired by the anime _Angel's_ _Egg_. It is my favorite anime, though I will admit I've only watched a few animes in my entire life.

Originally, Drained Rapture was meant to also be guarded by ancient warriors such as hoplites, Egyptian and Canaanite swordsmen, Roman legionaries, crusaders, knights, Mongols, mamluks, cataphracts, Napoleonic soldiers, and even Nazis. Their purpose was to reference Biomech Spirry's presence throughout thousands of years of history, gradually pulling people from other times and converting them into biomechanical monsters. As examples, medieval soldiers would use their own tendons as strings for arm-mounted crossbows, hoplites and knights and legionaries would have their armours nailed into their own bodies, and all these tortured souls would have been horrifically mutilated. In the end, I just didn't have time or energy to write all that out.

Biomech Spirry is unusual in that he has a uterus despite being male, meaning he is also female. He was planned to 'give birth' to a character who bursts out his stomach, but there were no characters available for that.

Interestingly enough, after Michael stole Anna, resulting in her being skinned, Spirry seems to have taken and hidden Anna from Michael sometime afterwards. This would be the reason why Michael needed to find another Elizabeth to learn more about Tears, and why Spirry and Skinned Elizabeth were somewhat friends. This allowed Skinned Elizabeth to eventually learn how to destroy the Mirror of Sin, which was an actual mirror in this world. Its origins are unknown, but seems to have something to do with a Dark Soul. Perhaps Spirry found it in another realm?

* * *

 **Unused Spirry Quotes**

"Yes, you killed the prophet. Though, you did not kill his god." -Spirry to Booker

"Are you divine, child?" -Spirry to Elizabeth

"Yes, Rosalind, magicians levitate. Columbia fails to fall. But dragons fly..."

"You feared a False Shepherd? My God, I wonder how you'll view me." -Spirry to Zachary

"You know, Elizabeth, your mother feared unholy science. Allow me to show it to you."


End file.
